The Call (discontinued)
by Meg Ducky
Summary: After the Great Battle, the Clans lived in peace. However, it wasn't long until trouble began attacking the Clans one-by-one with deadly force. Then, when things seemed bleak, the trouble vanished and the Clans were left with a lingering prophecy: "Air, darkness, water, and sky. One of each blood shall travel to save the forgotten Clan from a threat once thought to be forgotten."
1. Prologue

A lean tortoiseshell-and-white tom sat in front of a large group of cats, his tail wrapped neatly around his paws as he watched them with a calm expression. The gazes of the others were locked onto him, looking wary as they waited for him to finally speak. "They have everything we need," he called, his voice soothing as it boomed loud enough for those furthest to hear. "Shelter, food, a place to call home. But, they will not let us in, nor will they let us near their boundaries. They will kill us without hesitation, despite knowing we are only trying to survive." He paused. "I can help."

A large black tom grunted and got to his paws, already tired of the other tom's speech, and stalked toward the stranger, his ice-blue eyes narrowed as his tail lashed. "What do you want?" He growled. "I don't want to hear empty words to try and sway us in your favor."

The tortoiseshell-and-white tom blinked in feigned surprise, pretending to be hurt that he had been accused of such a thing. "What you want, of course. To take what is rightfully ours, to drive them away like they have drove us away."

The black tom stared at the other, eyes unreadable as he pondered over what the other was saying, swinging his large head around to gaze at his group. With a snort, he turned away from the speaker and stalked away, flicking his tail in a gesture. Quickly, a brown-and-black tom and a white she-cat followed suit, the three huddling together.

"What do you think?" The black tom growled, flicking his gaze back over toward the speaker.

"I believe we could trust him," the brown-and-black tom replied, twitching an ear. "He said he could help, and he mentioned having experience with them."

"He could be lying," the other tom warned, his ears flattening in uncertainty. "If he had experience with them, why isn't he dead? It could be a trap."

The white she-cat shook her head in disagreement before rubbing her muzzle against the larger tom's cheek. "I agree with Bruno. I doubt this is a trap, and why turn against your own? This is our chance," she mewed, adding in a small purr. "We could take them down for good and the lake could be all ours. Imagine how powerful we could be."

The black tom stared at the two before giving a slow nod, dipping his head. "Very well." He turned and padded back toward the speaker, the white she-cat matching him step-for-step, pressing her pelt against his as Bruno trailed behind them. "We accept your offer."

The tortoiseshell-and-white tom dipped his head, eyes revealing that he was pleased by the decision. "A wise choice," he mused, lifting his head. "I shall teach you everything I know about the Clans. I promise you, they're not as generous with each other as tales make them out to be."

 **Tada! Here's the repost of this story! Now, nothing much changed in this chapter, although I made it so Sol had just started speaking at the start of it, instead of him mid-speech. Crowley is also more cautious of him, but that's it.**

 **I also added a few new cats to Crowley's group, but other than that, they're still the same.**

 **Also, I totally used Stranger Things' type generator to make the cover of this story, though I will admit I have yet to watch it as of this revise. I plan on doing so, and I also plan on using this for a few other covers. And, last but not least, I have a poll on my profile, so feel free to check it out!**

 **Because I have about nine other chapters already made, I plan on posting those every Saturday. Though, of course that may change because I may get a bit impatient and post earlier xD**

 **Cats Outside the Clans**

Smoky - muscular gray-and-white tom who lives in a barn at the horseplace

Coriander - tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat who lives with Smoky

Sol - long haired tortoiseshell-and-white tom with pale yellow eyes

Crowley - large black tom

Pepper - skinny gray-and-brown she-cat

Forrest - dark gray-and-brown tom

Snowflake - white she-cat

Wren - light brown tabby she-cat with white feet

Bruno - brown-and-black tom

Simba - golden tabby tom

Jackie - pale tortoiseshell she-cat

Charcoal - dark gray tom with a black underbelly

McFurry - white tom with ginger tabby patches

Jo - very small black-and-white she-cat

Casey - silver tabby tom

Riley - cream-and-white tabby she-cat with blue eyes

Seraphina - tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat

Obsidian - dark gray, almost black, she-cat

Jenkins - mottled gray-and-white tom

Chuck - dark ginger tabby-and-white tom

Esmeralda - reddish-brown she-cat with yellow eyes

Zack - white tom with gray ears

Bonnie - fluffy, gray tabby she-cat

Mackerel - long-furred silver tom with a flattened muzzle

Finn - long-legged dusty brown tom with a darker underbelly and pale muzzle

Kenny - skinny dark gray, almost black, tom with a lighter belly

Caramel - golden-brown she-cat with green eyes

Twinkie - pale ginger tabby she-cat with short, flattened ears (expecting Charcoal's kits)


	2. Chapter 1

A large black-and-white tom stalked toward a ginger tom a few rabbit-lengths away, his tail perfectly still as he silently began to close the distance. However, he stopped suddenly, leaving a safe amount of space between them, and bunched his muscles, staring at the tom before finally leaping forward, tackling the ginger cat to the ground. The cat yowled and squirmed under his grasp, but the tom held fast, holding the cat firmly under his paws.

"Okay, lemme up," the cat gasped and the tom backed off, letting the ginger tom scramble to his paws to shake the dirt from his pelt. "Great StarClan, Patchpaw! Remind me to thank them that I'm not an enemy warrior."

The tom, Patchpaw, smirked and meowed, "Don't forget to thank StarClan that you're not an enemy warrior, Weaselfur."

Weaselfur shot him an amused glare and swatted a paw at the apprentice's ears, causing him to duck. "It's a good thing you and your sister are becoming warriors tonight. I don't think I could survive being tackled by you for much longer."

"And it'll get Lichenpaw to stop talking about it," Patchpaw added, his whiskers twitching in amusement at the thought of his over-eager sister. He then hesitated and causually asked, "Though wouldn't that leave Ryepaw being the only apprentice?"

His mentor's eyes glittered with amusement and he shook his head. "I heard Harespring talking to Onestar about making her a warrior as well. She's certainly proved her worth."

"Who's proved her worth?" A voice mewed and Patchpaw glanced over to his right, watching as a dark tortoiseshell she-cat padded out from the tall grass, followed shortly by a black she-cat.

"Ryepaw," the large apprentice replied, greeting the dark tortoiseshell with a playful bop on the nose. "I nominate you for cleaning out the elder's den."

"Just because you three are becoming warriors doesn't mean only one of you will get apprentice duties," the black she-cat chided and the apprentice flattened his ears in disappointment. "Now, you and Lichenpaw run along while we speak to Onestar."

Patchpaw's ears perked and he jumped to his paws, nodding. "Okay, Nightcloud!" He then turned and bounded off, Lichenpaw racing alongside him. The two then slowed as they reached the lakeshore, his fur bristling in excitement. "I hope I get a cool warrior name," he meowed, turning to face his sister. "Like Patchclaw or Patchfrost!"

"Or Patchpatch," Lichenpaw teased and he rolled his eyes in response. "I like the name Lichenwillow."

"Is Lichenbee too good for you?" He shot back and his sister swatted his ear in return.

"That's a terrible name," she whined. "You would be a terrible leader!"

Patchpaw laughed and shook his head. "No way! I would make a better leader than you! You were the one who came up with Patchpatch!" With that, he dipped his paw into the water and flicked it at her, causing the dark tortoiseshell to squeal and jump back. "I bet you can't catch me!" He then darted off away from her, laughing as he felt the wind rush through his fur, carrying his paws away from the shore.

"I'll get you for that!" She hollered behind him and Patchpaw could feel her close behind, encouraging a burst of speed from the tom.

"No way!" He called over his shoulder, racing on toward the RiverClan border before veering away. Suddenly, he skidded to a stop, staring at the distant shape of the mountains looming in the horizon. His cheerful attitude faded, replaced by a strong yearning to carry on, his paws itching to race to those mountains and to keep going.

"You okay?" Lichenpaw mewed, slowing down as she stopped beside him. When she followed his gaze, she let out a small 'oh' and sat down, curling her tail around her paws. "You still have that feeling, huh?"

Patchpaw just nodded before sighing, lowering his head. "It's dumb, but I feel like something is calling me to go."

"But you can't," the she-cat reminded, her voice turning bitter. "You're a warrior of WindClan, not some hare-brained loner."

He flinched at her words, knowing full well she was right, but also knowing she was wrong. Angrily, he dug his claws into the ground beneath him, staring straight ahead. "I know, but that doesn't change a thing. I… I feel like I _need_ to go, Lichenpaw."

His sister just snorted in annoyance and got to her paws, turning away. "Let's get back to camp. I'm sure Onestar wants to hold a Clan meeting sooner than later." With that, she bounded away, leaving her brother alone.

Patchpaw stared at the mountains a bit longer before sighing, turning around and running after the dark tortoiseshell, his spirits lifting once more when he realized he was finally becoming a warrior. With a burst of speed, he bolted forward, passing his sister before slowing down once he reached the camp, flicking his tail eagerly. "You take too long," he yowled over his shoulder, spotting Lichenpaw run up behind him.

She smacked his flank playfully and bounded off toward her former mentor, a spring in her step.

The large apprentice bounded over to his own mentor as well, eyes bright and hopeful. "What did Onestar say?"

Weaselfur twitched his whiskers, eyes shining as he replied, "Why don't you hear for yourself?"

Just then, the mottled brown tabby leader jumped up onto the Tallrock, lifting his muzzle and yowling, "Let all cats fast enough to catch their own prey join under the Tallrock to hear my words!"

As cats began to gather, Patchpaw spotted a gray-and-ginger she-cat bound up to him and his heart quicked, causing him to straighten.

"We're going to become warriors!" The she-cat purred, her eyes shining in delight as her tail curled happily. "Isn't this fantastic, Patchpaw?"

"It sure is, Ryepaw," he purred back, forcing himself to keep his fur flat so he wouldn't look like a hedgehog when called up. However, a sickening feeling suddenly washed over him and he staggered back, blinking rapidly.

"Are you alright?" Ryepaw asked, looking concerned as she stepped close to the large tom.

Embarrassed, Patchpaw could feel some of his Clanmates watching and he nodded, sitting down before he could stagger again. "Yeah, it's just… something's not right."

Onestar opened his jaws to speak when a voice yowled, "Attack!"

Suddenly, rogues flooded into the camp, catching the warriors off guard, and began attacking. "WindClan, attack!" Onestar screeched before leaping down into battle.

Patchpaw stared at the battling cats in horror, his paws frozen to the ground as the world seemed to spin around him, the screeches and caterwauls of battle ringing in his ears. A reddish-brown she-cat suddenly bowled into him, clamping her jaws onto his shoulder, breaking him out of his trance.

With a pained, furious screech Patchpaw quickly rolled over and pinned the she-cat down under his body, biting deeply into her foreleg. She wailed and thrashed under him, awkwardly clawing him with her free paw before he finally let go, stepping away. She spat at him and darted into the thick of the battle but he didn't dare follow suit. Instead, he spotted Lichenpaw being forced against the Tallrock, cornered by two identical looking gray-and-brown cats, one darker than the other. With a furious caterwaul, he darted over to them and grabbed the tom's scruff, dragging him away from Lichenpaw as she tackled the she-cat.

The tom screeched in pain and twisted in the apprentice's grasp, raking his muzzle with thorn-sharp claws.

Patchpaw yowled and staggered back, shaking blood from his snout as the tom tackled him again, digging his claws deep into the apprentice's flank before gripping the tom's throat in his teeth. The large apprentice began to panic and thrashed in the tom's jaws, screeching for help.

"Leave him alone!" A cat screeched and tackled the gray-and-brown rogue to the ground.

Quickly, Patchpaw scrambled to his paws, glancing over as Weaselfur attacked the rogue with little mercy. With a growl, he raced toward his sister and the two began to drive a small black-and-white she-cat back as they exchanged blows, but she refused to leave, instead doing her best to duck their blows and land some of her own.

A wail sounded to his left and Patchpaw glanced over, a cry escaping his jaws when he saw Ryepaw being pinned by a large black tom.

"Go help her," Lichenpaw cried, landing a hard blow to the she-cat's muzzle, causing the small rogue to finally flee. "I can handle myself."

The large tom blinked at his sister in gratitude and darted toward the black rogue, screeching as he dug his claws into the tom's back, taking hold as he sunk his teeth into the tom's shoulder.

A wail escaped the black rogue's jaws as he reared back, shaking the large apprentice off.

With a hiss, Patchpaw arched his back and lashed his fluffed out tail, baring his teeth as he stood over Ryepaw protectively.

Instead of fleeing, the rogue bared his own teeth in response and cuffed the apprentice's ear, slamming his paw harshly against the apprentice's head, his claws digging into the skin.

Patchpaw staggered back, shaking his head as he struggled to keep from crumbling, the world swaying around him as blood blurred his vision.

Ryepaw let out a furious yowl and began clawing at the large tom, driving him back as she raked her claws over his face and muzzle, causing him to flee. Quickly, she spun around and darted toward the fallen apprentice, nuzzling him worriedly. "Get up, Patch!"

With a groan, Patchpaw got to his feet and shook his head again, finally clearing his vision. "Are you okay?" He demanded, pressing his muzzle against the other apprentice's. "Are you hurt?"

"That doesn't matter now!" She snapped and pulled away, eyes wild. "Worry about me after we win." She then spun around and disappeared into the fight, leaving Patchpaw blinking rapidly after her as he continued to pull himself into focus.

He then gazed around wildly, watching as his Clanmates began to drive the rogues away, realizing he couldn't see his sister anywhere. "Lichenpaw!" He yowled, but was drowned out by the screeching and hissing. He spotted a white she-cat lunging toward him and he reared back, the two cats grappling as they tumbled to the ground. "Leave my Clan alone!" He snarled, raking his claws over the she-cat's cheek.

The she-cat jerked her head back and kicked her hind claws into his belly, her blood stained muzzle pulling back to reveal her blood stained teeth. "This land will belong to us!" She crowed, battering his belly to shreds.

With a pained wail and a surge of strength, he shoved the she-cat off and rolled onto his paws, blood dripping from his belly onto the ground, but he knew the wounds weren't deep. "Not if I can help it!" He lunged at her again, lashing blow after blow as he began to drive her away.

"Retreat!" The large black tom yowled, breaking away from a pale gray tabby tom and a long-legged brown she-cat.

With a hiss, the white she-cat landed one last blow across his chest and darted off after the tom, the rogues fleeing from the camp.

A groan escaped Patchpaw's jaws and he slumped to the ground, his energy fading and his wounds beginning to pulse in pain. However, he managed to heave himself to his paws, shaking his head and splattering droplets of blood onto the ground. He ignored his wounds, swinging his head around as he searched for Ryepaw and Lichenpaw. Quickly, he spotted the former and awkwardly bounded over to her. "Ryepaw! Are you okay?" She was holding a bleeding paw up off the ground, blood dampening her pelt.

"I'm fine," she assured, "it's not all my blood." Her eyes widened when she saw his wounds.

Before she could say anything, he meowed, "It's not as bad as it looks, trust me. But have you seen Lichenpaw?" She shook her head in response and he flattened his ears, turning away from her. "Lichenpaw! Where are you?"

"Patchpaw…?" A voice croaked from nearby and he followed it, freezing when he spotted his sister laying in a puddle of blood, her sides heaving as she struggled for breath.

When she spotted him, her pained gaze lit up and she lifted her muzzle up off the ground, blood trickling from her jaws. "We… we make a good team, Patchpatch…" Her eyes then rolled back and her head fell with a thud, a gurgling gasp following.

"No!" Patchpaw wailed, finally moving toward her. He collapsed beside her, pressing his muzzle into his shoulder as he gritted his teeth, vision blurring. "Stay with me, Lichenpaw! Come on, we're gonna be warriors!"

A rasp escaped the fallen she-cat's jaws as she tried to respond and her body shuddered, her breathing hitching as she began to choke on her own blood.

"Kestrelflight, you have to help her!" Patchpaw screeched and jumped to his paws, Lichenpaw's blood staining his black-and-white fur, staring at the medicine cat in desperation.

"I can't," the gray-brown tom rasped, slowly padding over to the siblings, his ears flattened with grief. "She's on her way to StarClan."

"You can't say that," Patchpaw hissed and lashed his tail before dipping his head down to Lichenpaw, nudging her shoulder with his muzzle. "Get up! You're gonna be fine!"

Slowly, Onestar limped toward the dying she-cat, lifting his muzzle as he rasped, "I ask my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. She has learned the warrior code and given up her life in the service of her Clan. Let StarClan receive her as a warrior. She will be known as Lichenspirit."

"No!" Patchpaw wailed and dropped down next to Lichenspirit, nudging her again. "Come on, you can't die on me!"

The dark tortoiseshell turned her dying gaze toward him, a small spark of pride flickering in yellow gaze before she fell limp, the life inside her eyes draining.

"Lichenspirit, get up!" He cried, feeling teeth gently grab him by the scruff and pull him back. With a moan, he tried to struggle free, wailing, "Let me be with my sister! She can't be dead!"

The cat released his scruff but Patchpaw crumpled to the ground, feeling like his heart was shattering as he stared at the limp body of his sister. He watched as Nightcloud slowly padded over toward Kestrelflight and Onestar, her tail dragging low.

"I'm so sorry, Patchpaw," a she-cat whispered and Ryepaw crouched next to the large, bloodied apprentice. "I'm so sorry."

Numbly, he felt her press her muzzle into his shoulder and the reality of Lichenspirit's death hit him hard. His body shook with grief and a broken wail escaped his jaws before he huddled against the other apprentice, whimpering pitifully into Ryepaw's fur as she quietly murmured into his ear, doing her best to soothe the grieving tom.

 **With this chapter, there were too many changes made, and the ones that did happen were mostly fixing typos.**

 **And I did lie about updating every Saturday x'D Sorry about that, but I got a little too impatient and excited to wait.**

 **WindClan**

Leader: Onestar - brown tabby tom

Deputy: Harespring - brown-and-white tom

 _Apprentice, Ryepaw_

Medicine Cat(s): Kestrelflight - gray-brown tom with white spots

Warriors:

Crowfeather - dark gray, almost black, tom

Nightcloud - black she-cat

Weaselfur - ginger tom with white feet

 _Apprentice, Patchpaw_

Leaftail - dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes

 _Apprentice, Cloudpaw_

Emberfoot - gray tom with two dark feet

Breezepelt - black tom with amber eyes

Gorsetail - very pale gray-and-white she-cat with blue eyes

Sedgewhisker - light brown tabby she-cat

Furzepelt - gray-and-white she-cat

 _Apprentice, Runningpaw_

Larkwing - pale brown tabby she-cat

Slightsplash - black tom with a splash of white on his chest

Feathercloud - gray tabby she-cat

Hootwhisker - dark gray tom

Oatnose - pale brown tabby tom

Apprentices:

Patchpaw - large black-and-white tom with amber eyes

Ryepaw - gray-and-ginger she-cat

Cloudpaw - pale gray tabby tom

Runningpaw - long-legged brown she-cat

Queens:

Heathertail - light brown tabby she-cat with blue eyes (expecting Breezepelt's kits)

Elders:

Whiskernose - light brown tom

Whitetail - small white she-cat

 **Cats Killed in Battle**

Lichenspirit - dark tortoiseshell she-cat with yellow eyes

Crouchfoot - ginger tom (died later from wounds)


	3. Chapter 2

A silver tabby she-cat padded toward the river's bank before slipping into the water without hesitation. Slowly, she started to swim out further away from the shore before diving under the water, screwing her eyes as she searched for any signs of life. She quickly spotted something, a large trout, and kicked out her hind legs, swimming forward and snagging the fish in her jaws. It thrashed about but she refused to let go, thrusting her head above the surface and gasping around the prey, clamping her teeth down tighter to keep it from freeing itself. Quickly, she swam back to the shore, hauling the fish up onto the bank where she delivered the killing blow, watching as the trout fell limp before she pushed it to the other two fish she had killed.

With a satisfied purr, she flicked her wet tail and turned back around, diving back into the river. She paddled out to a different area before diving down under the water, snagging the tail of a small chub in her jaws. The fish thrashed frantically but she refused to let go, swimming back up toward the surface and toward the shore, dragging the squirming chub in tow. She dropped it in the mud, swiftly bending down and snapping its spine before it could flop around any longer. With a white paw, she nudged the fish toward the small pile, pleased with her catch.

"Great job, Driftpaw."

Driftpaw jumped in surprise and turned, watching as her mentor padded out from a reed bed and toward the fish, leaning down to sniff the prey. "Thank you, Graymist," she meowed, forcing herself to hold back an excited purr. "I was thinking that Pouncetail might enjoy the trout."

"I'm sure he will," the pale gray tabby purred, flicking her tail before fixing her gaze on the horizon. "It's nearing sunset," she murmured, "Do you need help carrying the fish back to camp?"

The silver tabby apprentice glanced down at the fish and nodded. "Yes please!"

Graymist nodded and padded over, scooping two of the fish up by the tails, leaving the trout and chub for Driftpaw to carry back.

The apprentice stared and grabbed the trout's back, not wanting to drag the large fish back to camp in the mud, and tucked the chub carefully under her chin, hearing a soft mrow of laughter coming from her mentor. She flicked her tail in amusement and padded toward camp, keeping pace with Graymist.

"You look ridiculous," a voice mewed and Driftpaw barely contained the urge to roll her eyes, glancing over at the brown-and-white tom who spoke, his whiskers twitching in amusement.

When she passed him, she flicked her tail and splattered a few water droplets at him, causing him to jump back in surprise. With a purr, she bounded after her mentor and slipped into the camp, heading over to the fresh-kill pile before dropping the two fish with the rest.

"Go and relax," Graymist mewed, nodding to her apprentice. "I need to go speak to Mistystar." With that, she turned and bounded over to the leader's den.

Driftpaw stared after her, her yellow eyes wide as worry wormed its way into her belly. "M-Mistystar?" She repeated, her mind racing to see if she did anything wrong. Was she in trouble?

"Calm down, Driftpaw," the brown-and-white tom meowed, padding over, a small purr in his voice. "She might be talking about your warrior ceremony."

Driftpaw blinked and spun around to face the tom, tilting her head in surprise. "But I didn't even get my assessment yet!"

"Are you sure fishing wasn't your assessment?"

The silver tabby blinked and sat down, curling her tail around her paws. "Graymist didn't say anything about it." Her gaze lit up and she jumped to her paws, her heart soaring at the thought. "You really think so, Berryspots?"

Berryspots nodded and Driftpaw let out a small squeal, grabbing the trout and flicking her tail in goodbye before awkwardly bounding over toward the elders' den, the feeling of hope spreading warmth through her pelt.

"What's got you so excited, little one?" A ginger-and-white tabby tom rasped, lifting his head when the apprentice trotted over. His gaze landed on the trout and his eyes lit up, swiping his tongue over his jaws. "Did you catch that yourself?"

Driftpaw nodded eagerly and dropped the trout in front of the elder, nudging it to him with her muzzle. "I did! And because of it, I might become a warrior tonight!"

The tom purred, pulling the fish toward him with a paw. "Congratulations, Driftpaw. You've certainly earned it."

She lied down in front of the elder, enjoying the last of the sun's heat on her sodden pelt. "Pouncetail, do you think Mintfur will be proud of me?"

The elder looked up from the trout in confusion, swallowing the mouthful he had. "What makes you ask that?"

The silver tabby she-cat shrugged, glancing down at her white paws.

With a sigh, Pouncetail stretched his neck forward and touched his nose to the apprentice's ear, gaze soft. "Driftpaw, I can assure you you're father is very proud of you. Mintfur… he just has an odd way of showing it."

Driftpaw nodded, still hesitant, and got to her paws. "It was good talking with you, Pouncetail," she mewed, hope fizzing through her once more.

The old tom flicked an ear in response, biting into the trout eagerly.

The apprentice rolled her eyes in amusement and bounded away from the elders' den and straight over to her mentor who padded out of Mistystar's den, a spring in her steps. "What did she say?"

Graymist sighed and looked at her apprentice sadly. "I'm sorry, Driftpaw."

The apprentice's heart sank and her tail dropped sadly, scuffing the ground with a white paw. "I'm not gonna be a warrior, huh?"

Her mentor stared at her for a moment longer before suddenly letting out a loud purr, her tail curling. "You're going to become a warrior tonight!"

Driftpaw's head shot up and she stared at her mentor in surprise, wet fur prickling in excitement. "Really? You mean it?" When her mentor nodded, she let out a small squeal of excitement and spun around, racing toward the center of camp. When she spotted her parents, she quickly bounced over to them, her tail flagging in excitement and a bounce in her step. "I get to become a warrior tonight!"

Her mother's eyes lit up with pride and she purred. "That's wonderful, Driftpaw!" Her gaze landed on her daughter's pelt and she snorted. "Come here, you need to look presentable!"

Driftpaw whined and tried to hop away but her mother dragged her close, rasping her tongue over the silver tabby's drying pelt. "What do you think my name will be?" As she spoke, she glanced over at her father, the light gray tabby's gaze fixed on the leader's den. Her mother continued to groom her, staying silent, both waiting for the warrior to speak.

"Whatever she feels fits you best," the tom finally murmured, turning his gaze onto Driftpaw, and she noticed with a thrill that there was pride in his eyes. "I knew once you ignored that feeling you would be the best apprentice RiverClan has ever seen."

Her heart dropped, wishing she had never confided in him that she felt the need to travel beyond the mountains. She forced out a purr, not wanting to stir up bad feelings. "Thank you, Mintfur."

A yowl broke their conversation. "Let all cats old enough to swim gather to hear my words!"

"But she's not ready," her mother muttered and rasped her tongue over Driftpaw's ears, causing the apprentice to duck as she tried to scramble away.

"Let her go, Havenheart," Mintfur purred, resting his tail over his mate's back. "Driftpaw's ready."

She blinked at her father, grateful for his intervention, and her mother sighed, releasing her. Eagerly, she bounded toward the center of camp, weaving through her Clanmates before sitting up front next to her mentor, pelt itching in excitement.

Once every cat gathered, Mistystar locked her gaze onto Graymist, before calling out, "Graymist, has Driftpaw has proven herself to be a warrior?"

The pale gray tabby she-cat lifted her head and meowed, "She has, Mistystar."

The blue-gray she-cat nodded and beckoned the silver tabby apprentice toward her with her tail.

With shaky legs, Driftpaw padded forward, lifting her chin up as her body quivered in excitement, yellow eyes bright as she stared at her leader.

Mistystar gave a small dip of her head, ice-blue eyes shining as she lifted her muzzle up to the darkening sky. "I, Mistystar, leader of RiverClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. She has trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend her to you as a warrior in her turn." She lowered her muzzle, locking her intelligent gaze onto the quivering apprentice. "Driftpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

Driftpaw swallowed and, with a shaky voice, rasped, "I do."

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Driftpaw, from this moment you will be known as Driftsong. StarClan honors your enthusiasm and spirit, and we welcome you as a full warrior of RiverClan." Mistystar leapt down and padded toward Driftsong, resting her muzzle on top of the newly made warrior's head.

The silver tabby she-cat rasped her tongue over her leader's shoulder in return before the gray she-cat pulled away. Around them, her Clanmates chanted, "Driftsong! Driftsong! Driftsong!"

With a purr, she turned her gaze toward her parents, feeling happiness spread through her veins when she saw both of them chanting her name loudly. Her yellow eyes caught the gaze of Berryspots and warmth spread through her when he nodded in approval, eyes shining.

"Tonight, you shall sit vigil," the RiverClan leader murmured when the chanting quieted down, dipping her head to the warrior before padding away.

Driftsong puffed out her chest, feeling dizzy with excitement, almost not believing that she was now a warrior. Havenheart and Mintfur padded over, pride glowing in their eyes.

"Congratulations!" Her mother purred, rubbing her muzzle against her daughter's.

"Thank you," Driftsong purred back, her yellow eyes glowing brightly. "Tomorrow can we go fishing to celebrate?"

"Of course," Mintfur rumbled, pressing his nose to hers. "After you get some rest once your vigil is finished."

With another nod, the silver tabby she-cat turned away and padded toward the camp entrance, a spring in her step as her Clanmates congratulated her as she passed by. Her pace soon slowed when she reached the outskirts of camp and she sat down, gazing out as she kept her ears pricked.

However, her gaze wandered toward the distance, where she could no longer see the proud outlines of the mountains. Her paws itched for her to run and keep running until she reached… wherever she felt the urge to get to, but she ignored it.

Shaking her head, she gave a small snort as she focused back on the world around her, listening as her Clanmates began to head to their nests. She couldn't afford to daydream; she needed to watch over her Clan. They needed her to protect them while they slept.

A thrill raced through her, causing her to shiver at the thought. _They need me…_ Her tail curled happily and she straightened her posture, her yellow gaze raking the darkness as she remained on high alert. Silence filled the air, only to be broken by the sounds of crickets chirping somewhere nearby, lulling the warrior into a false sense of security.

Driftsong grunted and shook her head again, realizing she was losing focus. With a low growl, she dug her claws into the ground beneath her, fluffing out her fur as she stared ahead, determined to stay awake. Suddenly, the sounds of the crickets stopped.

She got to her paws, the fur along her spine bristling with unease, her gaze searching the bank across from her. When nothing moved, she parted her jaws to breathe in the scents when she froze, spotting white fur flash on the other side of the river before disappearing into the patch of reeds. The silver tabby she-cat stared, unsure if she should sound the alarm or ignore it. When nothing else moved and the crickets began to chirp once more, she forced herself to relax, sitting back down.

 _It's nothing,_ she thought silently, keeping her jaws clamped shut to prevent herself from speaking out loud accidentally.

However, the crickets fell silent once more and she heard a splash. She leaped to her paws and swung her head toward the sound, realizing in horror it was near the stepping stones. It was then she also saw the white shape rushing toward the camp, and she knew she could no longer keep her silence.

She parted her jaws to give the warning call when a dark blur bowled into her, sending them tumbling to the river. However, Driftsong managed to let out a piercing screech that shattered the still air as they struggled before a heavy paw slammed into her muzzle, the pain blinding her. Another cry escaped her maw as the cat bit down onto her right forepaw, digging their teeth deep into her flesh.

Suddenly, the night was alive with the sounds of battle, sending a jolt through the new warrior. With another cry she freed her forepaw and slashed her claws across the cat's chest, kicking her hind paws against the cat's stomach.

With a grunt, the long-legged cat staggered back and Driftsong scrambled to her paws, fluffing out her pelt as she unsheathed her claws which reflected the moonlight, a caterwaul escaping from deep inside her chest.

The tom in front of her snarl and reared back, and she quickly mimicked him, the two cats grappling as they clawed each other, balancing on their hind legs as they exchanged blows.

"You've tangled with the wrong Clan!" She hissed, baring her teeth.

The dusty brown tom just sneered and shoved his weight forward, knocking her down once more, sending both of them tumbling into the river.

Energy rushed through the silver tabby warrior and she slammed a sheathed white paw into the tom's head, causing him to grunt and loosen his hold on her. Quickly, she got to her paws, knowing she needed to act quickly with him still stunned, and rammed him further into the river. A panicked wail escaped his maw, bringing him out of his daze, and he scrambled to his paws, the water splashing eagerly at his belly.

With a snarl, she lunged toward him again, causing him to stumble back into deeper water. He reared up to meet her, panic now dictating his every move, but staggered, falling into the middle of the river. He let out a terrified screech before disappearing under the waves.

Driftsong watched with a hard gaze as he thrashed back to the surface, the river carrying him away from camp. She wanted to leave him, but she could hear her father's voice ringing in the back of her mind, scolding her for willingly wanting a cat to drown. With a snarl, she leaped onto the riverbank and raced after the tom, her anger fading into determination and fear, realizing the feline's fight against the current was growing weaker.

"Hang on!" She cried and dove into the river, swimming after the struggling rogue. He disappeared under once more and she dove after him, gripping his scruff in her jaws. She then kicked upward toward the surface, hearing him gasp and splutter as she swam toward the opposite river bank, dragging his sodden body ashore.

The tom stayed on his belly, gasping and wheezing for breath as water streamed off of his pelt, turning his stunned bright orange onto the RiverClan warrior, too weak and frightened to get up and continue the fight.

Driftsong bared her teeth at him, no longer worried about him drowning, and snarled, "Never return here again!" With that, she spun around and threw herself back into the river, her powerful kicks pushing her to the island that held the battle. Without even pausing to shake the water from her silver tabby fur, she raced on, paws hitting the ground silently as she skidded to a halt at the camp entrance, staring at the fighting cats in alarm. _There's enough rogues to fill a Clan!_ She thought, her anger and courage fleeing her. _Oh, StarClan, help us!_

It was then she spotted a pale tortoiseshell she-cat stalking toward her former mentor, who was already fighting a flat-faced silver tom. Fury rushed through her veins once more, and with a yowl, she flung herself at a pale tortoiseshell she-cat, knocking the rogue off her paws before she pinned her to the ground. As quick as an adder, she sank her fangs deep into the tortoiseshell's side, causing the she-cat to screech and thrash. Driftsong released her and reeled back, barely dodging the she-cat's blow.

The pale rogue snarled as she heaved herself to her paws, her bared teeth reflecting in the moonlight. Instead of fleeing like the warrior believed she would, she quickly lashed her claws across the RiverClan cat's muzzle.

The silver tabby warrior shrieked and back away, shaking her head as her own blood blinded her, panicking seizing her heart.

The rogue, refusing to let the distraction slip by, tackled her to the ground, biting the warrior's throat as she struggled to get a good drip against her clumped fur, another wail escaping the tabby's maw.

Blindly, Driftsong lashed out, hearing a shriek when her claws met the she-cat's face. Feeling the weight lift, she scrambled to her paws and shook her head once more, clearing her vision just in time to see the pale tortoiseshell finally flee.

Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a mottled gray-and-white tom charging toward her and she quickly scrambled back, rearing onto her hind paws before slamming her front paws onto the tom's back when he darted by.

The tom yowled in pain and collapsed, his body pinned under the warrior. Angrily, Driftsong clamped her jaws down onto the tom's neck, fighting the urge to snap it as her vision started to muddle with a red haze, briefly losing focus of the world around her. It was when she felt the tom stop struggling that she could hear ragged gasps escaping his jaws as he struggled for air that alarm shot through her veins. Quickly, she released her grip on his neck and scrambled back, staring at the gasping tom in fear.

The tom stared at her with wide green eyes, disgust and fright mingled within as he caught his breath. Then, without hesitation, he darted off in the direction of the pale tortoiseshell, his tail between his legs.

Driftson let out a shaky snort, refusing to allow herself to settle on the realization she had almost killed, before she spun, her yellow eyes raking the camp to see if any of her Clanmates needed help.

Her gaze widened in alarm when she spotted cream-and-white tabby she-cat and a white tom cornering Pouncetail, the two rogues toying with the elder as they exchanged harsh blows. Fury sparked through Driftsong's pelt and she screeched, haring over toward them before sinking her claws into the white tom's back, dragging him away from from her friend. "You leave him be!" She spat.

Just then, the other rogue spun away from Pouncetail and leaped at the younger warrior, biting deeply into her scruff and hauling her off of the white tom.

The silver tabby screeched in a mixture of pain and anger, writhing in the rogue's grasp before breaking free. Quickly, she lashed her claws across the white tom's face, sending him staggering backwards as he hissed in pain before spinning around toward the other tabby, lunging forward and clamping her jaws around the rogue's ear.

The she-cat howled and yanked her head away, leaving the RiverClan warrior with the top of her ear in her mouth. With a furious caterwaul, she lunged at the warrior once more, and the white tom quickly joined in.

Driftsong spat out the ear and tried to lash out at the tabby she-cat before being yanked back by the white tom, alarm building in her heart as she struggled against both of the rogues, focusing on blocking their blows and defending herself, rather than trying to attack them. However, she found herself being pushed back against the thick reeds that surrounded the RiverClan camp, and she begged to StarClan, praying for help to arrive.

Just when it seemed like she was about to be killed, a battle cry sounded behind them and a familiar brown-and-white tom streaked toward the, tackling the white tom away from her.

Without wasting a heartbeat, Driftsong barreled into the cream-and-white tabby, knocking the rogue off her paws, and allowing herself to break away from the reed barrier. As the rogue tumbled, she pinned her down, giving a warning nip to her throat, and released her.

The tabby she-cat raced away just as the RiverClan tom released the white rogue, both of them disappearing into the fray.

"Thanks, Berryspots," Driftsong gasped and shook her head, clearing the blood that had started to dribble off of her muzzle.

"Someone's gotta look out for you and Pouncetail," the warrior purred, gently pressing his nose against her ear before racing back into the thick of the battle.

"I'm old not useless!" Pouncetail spat, staggering to his paws as he shook blood from his pelt.

The silver tabby she-cat flicked her tail tip to his shoulder affectionately, letting out a shaky purr before bunching her muscles, prepared to leap back into the tangle of cats to continue the fight. However, before she could do so, a voice rang above the clamor.

"Retreat!"

The remaining rogues suddenly broke away from the warriors and began to flee, racing out of the camp as fast as they could with their injuries. Mistystar bounded after them before halting at the camp entrance, watching them flee. She lifted her head and let out a victorious yowl, the rest of the RiverClan warriors picking up the call.

With a groan, Driftsong slumped to the ground in relief, feeling the thrill of the fight flood from her veins. Her wound began to throb and ache as blood continued to pulse from her wounds. Once she caught her breath, the young warrior heaver herself to her paws, flinching as her muscles cried out in agony, the deep wounds on her right forepaw sending agony shooting up her leg. A pained gasp escaped her jaws as she staggered, barely able to catch her footing.

When she lifted her head up, she spotted her father lying on the ground, hidden in the shadows of the apprentices' den, and let out a weak purr. She shook her pelt, causing scarlet drops to scatter across the bloodied ground, and limped over toward him. "We won," she rasped, another weak purr following. "We did it, Mintfur! We taught those rogues-"

She froze, realizing her father hadn't moved when she reached him, and that he still wasn's stirring. "Mintfut...? Come on, get up. We won." Shakily, she limped forward a little closer and leaned down, nudging the warrior's head with her muzzle.

His head lolled at the nudge, but her father still didn't move a muscle, his eyes staring blankly out in front of him.

"No..." Driftsong staggered back, her ears flattened and eyes wide with terror. She lifted her head to call out for help when she spotted a slumped figure close by. Grief-stricken, she awkwardly padded over to them, freezing when she was only a few mouse-lengths away.

The slumped figure was lying in a puddle of blood, scarlet staining her black-and-white pelt, but the silver tabby knew all too well who it was.

"Havenheart!" She wailed, her heart breaking even more as she staggered toward her fallen mother, collapsing next to her side. "Get up!" She pushed her muzzle into the warrior's scruff, her teeth gritted as her vision blurred even more, distorting the world around her.

Driftsong flinched when she felt someone rest their tail over her back before wearily turning her head up toward her Clanmate, blinking her eyes to try and clear her vision.

Mistystar stared down at her, the leader's gaze full of sympathy as she leaned down to gently nuzzle the young warrior. "I need you to come with me, Driftsong."

Numbly, the silver tabby nodded and shakily got to her paws, her white chest stained with Havenheart's blood, and her eyes near black with shock. She slowly limped alongside her leader, barely registering that Mistystar's tail was still draped over her, and barely registering that she was taking her to the elders that huddled outside of their den. She stopped when the blue-gray she-cat did, her gaze locked onto the ground below her bloodied paws.

"Pouncetail, I thought Driftsong might need a friend."

"Of course, Mistystar."

The RiverClan leader turned her head and gently touched her nose to the shocked she-cat's ear, murmuring softly, "I'm very sorry, Driftsong. Willowshine or Mothwing will visit you shortly." When Driftsong gave a small nod, the leader gently pulled her tail away before padding off to check on the rest of her Clan.

The silver tabby flinched again as she felt Pouncetail gently press up against her, and she turned her gaze up to him, barely fighting back the urge to wail like a lost kit.

The elder seemed to sense her urge, and he gently rasped his tongue between her ears. "Follow me, little one," Pouncetail mewed, his voice soft as he rested his short tail on the tabby's shoulders.

The young warrior limped after him, her head lowering once more as they slipped into the elders' den, a tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat and a light brown tabby she-cat quickly following suit.

Pouncetail gently nudged Driftsong to an empty nest, allowing the young warrior to curl up in it first before letting the tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat to curl around her. He then settled himself close by, not caring that he wasn't on a nest, and studied the young tabby with worry evident in his gaze.

Driftsong huddled against the elderly she-cat, her body trembling with shock and grief, her head buried between her blood-stained white paws.

"It'll be alright in time," the she-cat murmured, briefly flicking her worried gaze toward the other two elders.

The silver tabby whimpered in response, huddling even closer to the elder's pelt, the trembling growing stronger, her vision haunted with the bodies of her parents. "We were supposed to go fishing tomorrow," she cried, her voice muffled, paying no attention to the gray tabby that had entered the den.

"Driftsong," the she-cat murmured quietly, gently resting a paw on the warrior's shoulder.

Slowly, the silver tabby she-cat lifted her head up, turning her glazed eyes onto her Clanmate. The scent of herbs filled her nose, nearly fully blocking out the scent of drying blood, and numbly watched as the she-cat nudged a few herbs and seeds toward her. With an encouraging nudge from the tortoiseshell-and-white elder beside her, Driftsong craned her neck forward and lapped them up wearily, her nose crinkling at the bitter taste.

"I'll return shortly to treat your wounds," the medicine cat murmured, gently pressing her snout against the warrior's head before pulling away.

"Thank you, Willowshine," the tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat purred and Willowshine dipped her head.

"Of course, Mosspelt. Is anyone else hurt?"

"Just a few scratches," Pouncetail admitted with a grunt. "Nothing serious. Don't waste your herbs on me."

Willowshine huffed and shook her head, opening her jaws to argue, but froze along with the elders when Driftsong began to tremble once more. Quickly, she shut her jaws and padded out of the den, not wanting to disturb the warrior further.

"Easy, Driftsong," Mosspelt murmured softly, curling her tail around the trembling warrior as she rested her muzzle on the top of her head. "Just get some sleep, little one."

Slowly, the silver tabby closed her eyes, feeling the shock start to fade as exhaustion began to creep up on her. With a small whimper, she pressed her head against Mosspelt's shoulder, vaguely aware of the elder gingerly grooming her fur as she drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

 **I changed more in this chapter than the previous two, though I simply added a bit more details, changed the lines a bit, and switched out a few characters for other ones.**

 **I'm also going to add chapters, later on, dealing with how each Clan reacts to the fact that the Four have to leave and go on a journey to supposedly save an unknown Clan. Again, that won't happen for a few more chapters, but I figured I might as well share that with everyone beforehand.**

 **also, welp, I forgot to upload last weekend and yesterday, so I'll upload a few chapters today!**

 **RiverClan**

Leader: Mistystar - blue-gray she-cat with ice-blue eyes

Deputy: Reedwhisker - black tom

Medicine Cat(s): Mothwing - dappled golden she-cat

Willowshine - gray tabby she-cat

Warriors:

Minnowtail - dark gray-and-white she-cat

Mallownose - light brown tabby tom

Sneezecloud - gray-and-white tom

Beechfur - light brown tom

Graymist - pale gray tabby she-cat

Mossyfoot - brown-and-white she-cat

 _Apprentice, Tumblepaw_

Duskfur - brown tabby she-cat

Petalfur - gray-and-white she-cat

Icewing - white she-cat with blue eyes

Shimmerpelt - silver tabby she-cat

Lakeheart - gray tabby she-cat

 _Apprentice, Stonepaw_

Heronwing - dark gray-and-black tom

Lizardtail - light brown tom

Perchclaw - gray-and-white she-cat

Berryspots - brown-and-white tom

Driftsong - silver tabby she-cat with yellow eyes

Apprentices:

Tumblepaw - white tom

Stonepaw - light gray tabby tom

Queens:

Elders:

Pouncetail - ginger-and-white tom

Mosspelt - tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat with blue eyes

Rushtail - light brown tabby she-cat

Rainpelt - gray speckled tom; retired early due to injuries

 **Cats Killed in Battle**

Mintfur - light gray tabby tom

Havenheart - black-and-white she-cat


	4. Chapter 3

A dark brown tom padded alongside a gray she-cat and a mottled gray-and-white she-cat, their pawsteps silent and matching each other stride for stride. "So how much prey did we need to bring back?" He asked quietly, pausing to scent the air with parted jaws.

"As much as we can," the gray she-cat murmured in response, breaking off from the group to scent the air as well. "I think it might play into our warrior assessment."

"Really?" The tom's eyes widened in surprise.

"Yeah, really." The mottled gray-and-white she-cat turned toward the dark brown tom, her eyes narrowing. "Why? Want to become a loner after all?"

The tom bristled, flattening his ears as he glanced away. He knew better than to try and argue with her, as it would only end with her gaining the upper paw. With a small snort, he turned away from them, hearing the mottled apprentice sneer.

"What? Too cowardly to stand your ground? Maybe you would make a better loner after all."

"Oh, leave him alone, Brindlepaw!" The gray she-cat suddenly snapped, her tail lashing as she stood between the two apprentices.

The tom spun around, staring at her in surprise before flicking his gaze back to the mottled she-cat, shuffling his paws nervously as the two faced off.

Brindlepaw growled before scoffing, rolling her eyes in annoyance. She then padded around the gray she-cat, pausing right next to her as she hissed, "Look, I don't care where you two go, but stay out of my way. I'm going to hunt, and I don't want you and Copperpaw to mess things up." She shot a furious glance toward her brother, and he ducked, cowering. With a snort, she began to stalk away from them before pausing. "Oh, one more thing. Newtpaw? Copperpaw needs to take care of himself. He's not a kit anymore." And, with a flick of her white-tipped tail, she bounded off into the undergrowth, leaving the two siblings alone.

Copperpaw shuffled his dark paws in embarrassment before glancing up toward his sister, seeing her angrily staring in the direction of Brindlepaw. "Thank you," he mumbled, flattening his ears. "I could've handled her myself, y'know."

Newtpaw snorted and padded back over to him, gently touching her nose to his ear affectionately. "I know, but I don't like it when Brindlepaw bullies us and the others around. I can't believe Rowanstar thought it was a good idea to make her his apprentice!"

He lifted his gaze up to his sister and let out a small purr, amusement bubbling in his chest. "It certainly only made her worse." With a small sigh, he lifted his ears and swiveled them around, trying to hear any sign of prey. "Come on, we should start hunting before Brindlepaw decides to mess it up for us."

Newtpaw gave a small sigh before nodding in agreement. "Yeah, you're right. Though she may have already scared away all the prey with her yelling."

Copperpaw held back a laugh and shook his head before padding into the undergrowth in the opposite direction of Brindlepaw, his steps silent. He glanced over, seeing his sister pad next to him, before turning his attention in front of him, pausing to scent the air. A familiar scent caught his attention, and he crept forward, still inhaling to make sure it was fresh.

He licked his lips and turned toward Newtpaw, seeing that she had caught the scent as well. "Frog," he whispered and she nodded, slinking into the undergrowth. Quietly, he crawled toward the scent, freezing in place when he spotted the prey a little ways away.

He then wriggled his haunches and bunched his muscles before lifting his gaze upward, waiting for the signal to pounce. A few heartbeats later, he spotted a flick of a gray tail, and leaped forward.

The frog quickly hopped out of the way and continued to hop, only to be struck down by Newtpaw who exploded out of the brush, nipping the frog's spine to kill it. "One down," she mewed, lifting her head as she licked her lips. "Next time you can kill it."

Copperpaw nodded and lifted his head to scent the air as his sister buried the frog, hoping to catch something. He crouched down and slunk low to the ground, creeping through the territory as he hoped to find something to take back. It wasn't long until he spotted a lizard perched on a rock, basking in a little ray of sunlight. He halted and checked the wind before slowly creeping toward the rock, dark green eyes locked onto the lizard as he took slow, cautious steps. Then, without a moment of hesitance, he pounced, grabbing the lizard in his claws before snapping its neck with his teeth.

With a satisfied purr, he sheathed his claws and turned around to his sister, tail raised as he held the lizard proudly in his jaws. He then trotted over to her before dropping it, digging a dark paw into the ground to bury it. "Bright-tail will like that," he mused, burying the lizard.

"She would, but she would need more," Newtpaw pointed out, briefly using a hind paw to scratch behind her ear. "We should find a juicy pigeon for her instead; I've seen them around the ThunderClan border once or twice."

Copperpaw flattened his ears, shuffling his paws nervously. "Do we have to?"

"Come _on_ , Copperpaw. We're allowed over there, we just can't cross the border. It'll be fine."

With a sigh, the dark tom nodded slowly, though still felt reluctant. "Okay, okay. I just don't want that one warrior accuse us of trespassing again." He then trotted off after his sister, quickly catching up before he slowed his gait to keep by her side.

Newtpaw frowned, glancing over at her brother in confusion. "You mean Snowclaw? He's always throwing insults our way and looking for trouble. Tigerheart says he was born with his tail in a twist."

"Was that the same cat who attacked Goldenfrost, even though he was just trying to warn ThunderClan of that fox?"

His sister nodded and gave a small snort. "Oh yeah, that'd be Snowclaw as well. He's an arrogant snakeheart, that's for sure. Remember when that ThunderClanner ran into me at the last Gathering?"

He tilted his head, narrowing his eyes in thought before nodding. "Yeah. Let me guess, that was Snowclaw?"

Newtpaw nodded again, flicking her tail. "He never apologized, and then blamed me! One of his Clanmates gave him a good scolding, though."

Copperpaw scoffed and shook his head. "ThunderClan is filled with grumpy warriors. And so nosy! Remember when-" He froze suddenly, parting his jaws as the tang of blood filled his senses, causing his throat to constrict.

The gray she-cat stared at him in confusion and opened her mouth to speak, but froze as well. "Is..." Her voice faltered. "Is that blood?"

He nodded swallowing heavily before scenting the air again, his fur bristling in panic, claws unsheathed and dug deeply into the ground below. "Brindlepaw," he rasped, feeling a jolt of terror rush through him. "It's Brindlepaw!"

Before his sister could speak, he spun away from her and the border. "Brindlepaw!" He yowled, immediately sprinting forward, crashing through the undergrowth as he followed the scent, ignoring his sister's cries for him to wait. He skidded to a halt when he spotted the mangled body of the mottled gray-and-white she-cat lying halfway under a thicket of brambles, her dead eyes staring out as her face remained twisted in a frozen snarl. Slowly, he padded toward her, eyes wide in grief as he pressed his muzzle against her back, wishing for her to move. "This can't be…" He swallowed thickly and lifted his head, backing away as he stared at the apprentice's body.

"Oh, StarClan…" Newtpaw slowly padded forward, stopping next to her brother. Her ears were flattened and her eyes wide, fur bushed out in alarm. "This… this can't be real. Please tell me it's not real, Copperpaw."

The dark brown tom parted his jaws to speak, but he was only able to force out a weak whimper. He staggered back, shaking his head as his mind began to spin in grief and alarm. "Someone killed her," he gasped, staring at his living sister in terror. "We have to get back to the Clan. They need to know!" He whipped around and began to hare back to camp as fast as possible, his sister hot on his paws. As he ran, he caught his paw on a small bramble, staggering as a pained yelped escaped his maw. However, Newtpaw kept running, and he shook it off, chasing after her, barely feeling the pain as fear kept him going.

However, both apprentices soon skidded to a stop when they spotted a clump of white fur caught on a bramble. "S-Snowbird must've came by," Newtpaw rasped, her body trembling as she took a step back. "Maybe even Bright-tail."

With shaking legs, Copperpaw slowly staggered forward, his heart pounding wildly as he breathed in the scent of the fur deeply before reeling back in alarm. "It's not from Snowbird or Bright-tail," he gasped, swinging his head around with flattened ears and wide eyes. "It's not ShadowClan at all."

Newtpaw stared at him in horror, her jaws parted in a silent wail. She swallowed and went to speak, when a snapping of a twig silenced them both.

Copperpaw stared at his sister in horror before darting under a bramble thicket, feeling her huddle against him. Carefully, he shakily crawled forward and peered out of the tendrils, holding his breath when he spotted a small group of cats awkwardly padding through the marsh.

"What do you see?"

He flicked his tail across her muzzle in response, freezing when he spotted one cat stop. His heart began to pound even faster against his rib cage, his fur bristling as the skinny near black tom padded toward the brambles. The moment he smelled fresh blood on him, his heart seemed to stop, and realization dawned on him that the rogue was the one who may have killed his sister.

"Kenny!"

The ShadowClan apprentices watched, feeling relieved as the rogue gave a grunt and bounded off toward the others. With a small sigh, he wriggled backwards, pressing up against Newtpaw as his body trembled. "That was close," he said, his mew barely above a whisper. "What are we gonna do?"

Newtpaw stared at him with wide eyes before swallowing, wriggling her way up toward the front so she could peer out. "They're headed toward the camp!" She hissed, her fur bristling in alarm.

Copperpaw quickly scrambled backwards out of the brambles, wincing as the thorns dug into his fur and prick his skin. He gasped once he tumbled out, fluffing out his fur completely as he lashed his tail. "We need to warn our Clan!"

"You watch them," Newtpaw whispered, backing out from under the bracken. "I'm going to warn the others."

"No! You might be caught!"

"Shut up, Copperpaw!" The gray she-cat snapped, startling him into silence. "I can do this! I need you to make sure they don't get back to camp or else what's protecting our Clan will hurt them." She then gingerly pressed her nose against his, amber eyes dark with determination and fear, and then she darted away, disappearing under the growth of the marsh.

Copperpaw stared after her, the blood roaring in his ears as his mind went blank, his breathing ragged with fear. However, when he heard quiet laughter rise from the group of rogues, his fear was slowly replaced with fury, the image of Brindlepaw flashing through his mind. With a hiss, he raced after them, careful to be as silent as possible, knowing one small mistake could get him killed.

When he heard them come to a hault, he stopped too, flattening his ears in panic. _Oh, StarClan! They must've heard me!_ Quickly, he hared away from them, keeping low to the ground, and hid behind the closest pine tree. He gasped for breath when he stopped, forcing his breathing to slow, and glanced up at the tree. He closed his eyes briefly before jumping up at the trunk, digging his claws into the wood to keep himself from falling.

Once he was sure he caught his footing, Copperpaw scrambled up the pine like a squirrel, passing the lower branches before scrambling onto one that appeared thick and solid. He stopped, his back pressing against the trunk, and caught his breath, blood roaring in his ears. He then slowly crawled out onto the branch, forcing his way through the needles, and stopped when he spotted the group of rogues just standing there, as if they were waiting for something.

Unease rippled through his pelt and he barely held back a small growl, flattening his ears as pressed his belly against the branch, ignoring the needles digging into his skin. He narrowed his dark green eyes, watching the rogues as they still waited, and anger sparked through his veins when he realized they were acting as though it was their territory.

Copperpaw dug his claws into the bark of the pine tree, hoping that help would arrive soon. He didn't like the rogues on ShadowClan land, but he knew he wouldn't last long if he tried to face them all at once. With a sharp sigh, he closed his eyes, struggling to control his jumbled emotions before he opened them once more, fixing his angry, frightened gaze onto the rogues.

"Six," he breathed out, his gaze flickering over the cats one by one to make sure he was correct. "There's only six. They won't win." However, even as he spoke, he felt dizzy, and he knew his words were a lie. Something wasn't adding up but, not matter how hard he thought, he couldn't figure out what was wrong. His gaze then flicked away from the rogues and, even though he couldn't see it, toward the direction of the mountains, feeling the familiar pull in his paws to race to them and away into unknown land.

He shook his head, digging his claws deeply into the bark. _Snap out of it! The Clan depends on me!_ He turned his attention back to the rogues, but movement in front of the them caught his attention, and he held back a cry of relief when he saw a dark ginger tom leading a battle patrol toward the group, Newtpaw padding next to him. Slowly, he stood up, preparing to head back toward the ground when he spotted a flash of black-and-white fur. He searched for it again, panic rising in his chest when he spotted it once more and saw that it was more rogues, racing in the direction of his Clanmates.

"Rowanstar!" Copperpaw screeched, exploding out of the needles before swaying on the edge of the branch, his fur bushed out in terror of falling and of the ambush. However, his outburst gained the attention of the ShadowClan cats as well as the rogues, and relief flooded through him, giving him hope his Clan still stood a chance. "It's an ambush!" He yowled, even louder than before, ignoring the sharp strain in his throat.

Just as the words came out of his jaws, the second group of rogues exploded out of the undergrowth and into his Clanmates.

A shriek escaped his jaws as he watched the sudden battle in terror, eyes wide in shock as the screeches filled his ears. His body began to shake as he remained still, the branch still drooping under his weight, and it felt as though he was completely frozen. It was then, in his fear, that he saw a golden tabby tom pin a small black-and-white tom underneath him, only to ear the small cat's throat out instead of letting him flee.

Fury flooded through his veins, and Copperpaw let out a vicious caterwaul before leaping down to the branch below him, quickly making his way down the pine tree and to the ground. Without even letting his body recover from the sudden shock of hitting the ground, the dark brown tom raced into battle, dodging writhing cats as he made his way toward the rogue. With a hoarse screech, he tackled the golden tabby to the ground, unsheathing his claws until his paws ached before piercing them into the tabby's skin, sinking his teeth into the tom's shoulder. "You killed Lizardpaw!"

The tabby tom shrieked and reared back, thrashing as he struggled to keep on his paws and throw off the apprentice.

However, Copperpaw held strong and began to kick his hind legs into the tom's spine, causing the rogue to stagger and fall to the ground. Before he could inflict more damage, teeth dug into his scruff and hauled him off the golden tabby tom, who, once freed, quickly bolted.

With a snarl, the apprentice twisted in the grasp of the cat, lashing out an unsheathed dark paw. The cat howled and, when they released him, he spun around to face them, watching briefly as the near black tom, whom he recognized as Kenny, stagger back, shaking blood from his face. Copperpaw spat and darted forward, pinning the skinny tom to the ground as he bared his teeth in fury. "You killed her!" He snarled before lunging for the rogue's throat.

Kenny yowled and shoved his hind paws into his belly, throwing the apprentice off him as he scrambled to his paws, baring his teeth in a sickly grin. "You mean that pathetic excuse for a Clan cat?" He sneered, crouching low as he faced the apprentice, watching him get to his paws. "She kept screaming for a Newtpaw and a Copperpaw to save her. One of them must be you. Too bad you weren't there, the fear in her eyes was a beautiful sight to see."

Fury blinded the dark apprentice, causing him to see red, and Copperpaw screeched, lunging at the near black rogue, lashing out without thinking his moves first.

Because of that, the skinny easily ducked and dogded his blows, lashing out his claws across his muzzle and shoulders.

The rogue quickly landed a harsh blow across his face and Copperpaw staggered back, his fury fading as he struggled to remain standing, his vision blurring as he finally fell to the ground. He didn't even notice Kenny stalk toward him, aiming to end his life, as he shook blood from his eyes, unable to get his vision to focus.

"Copperpaw!"

The cry sounded muffled and he fuzzily watched in amazement as a dark gray tabby tom bowled into the darker furred rogue, the two hissing and spitting as they wrestled on the ground.

Slowly, the Copperpaw staggered to his feet, the sounds of battle starting to become louder in his ears. He shook his head and staggered again, the world suddenly snapping back into focus. With a hiss, he lunged forward unsteadily and hooked his claws into Kenny's back, dragging him off of his Clanmate.

The rogue whipped around angrily, freeing himself of the dark brown tom's grasp, only to be brought down by the dark tabby once more. Quickly, the rogue rolled out of the way and scrambled to his paws, ears sealed back as he let out a hiss, backing away from the advancing ShadowClan cats. He then spun around and darted off into the undergrowth, disappearing from sight.

With a snarl, Copperpaw tried to lunge after him but the dark tabby tom grabbed his scruff, holding him back. He thrashed in the tom's grasp and tumbled to the ground when he released him. Quickly, he scrambled back to his paws and spun around to face his Clanmate, his fur bristling. "I needed to get him! He killed Brindlepaw! Don't you care?"

The tabby tom flinched, but didn't dare back away. "Warriors don't kill to win, remember?" He shot back, lashing his tail.

Copperpaw grimaced and let out a low growl, lashing his tail as he slowly straightened, forcing his fur to flatten. "That doesn't mean I wouldn't let him live given the chance, Flintpaw," he hissed.

"Retreat!"

He turned his gaze back to the battle, watching in surprise as the rogues suddenly broke away from the ShadowClan cats and took off, quickly disappearing into the undergrowth away from the camp.

"Copperpaw? Where are you?"

His ears perked up at the voice and cried, "Newtpaw!" Quickly, he limped away from Flintpaw, his pace slowly drastically as his wounds began to catch up with him. With a small groan, he staggered to the ground, feeling the blood trickle through his thick fur and down his skin. Agony flared through his body as he staggered back to his paws and limped on, spotting a familiar gray she-cat searching wildly around the wounded warriors. "Newtpaw! Over here!"

Newtpaw spun around and raced over to him, her eyes flooding with relief as she pressed her muzzle against his, a light sob escaping her chest. "Thank StarClan you're alive," she gasped.

"I'm glad you're alive, too," he rasped, his voice straining once more from the screeching he had done earlier. "One of the rogues killed-"

A wail interrupted him and the siblings turned, staring as a cream-furred she-cat fell down next to the fallen black-and-white tom, pressing her nose deep into his blood-stained fur.

"Lizardpaw…" Newtpaw mumbled, pulling away from her brother as she stared at the two cats in grief. "Cedarpaw is going to be devastated…"

Copperpaw lowered his head, guilt filling his heart as he shuffled away from his sister.

"Where are you going?" Newtpaw demanded.

"It's my fault," he said, voice cracking with grief as he limped away from his Clanmates. "I could've saved Lizardpaw."

"How?"

He stoppped, turning to face his sister with flattened ears and blurry eyes. "If I was on the ground, I could've helped him fight Kenny."

"Oh, Copperpaw..." His sister pressed against him, touching her nose to his, her eyes filled with grief. "There's was nothing you could've done to save him."

He sighed and pulled away, limping alongside the trampled growth. "I just wish I could've helped," he whimpered and shook his head. "I just wish-"

He froze when he spotted the lifeless ginger-and-brown tom laying in a pool of blood, his belly torn open. With a strangled cry, Copperpaw staggered back and bumped into his sister, his green eyes filled with dread and grief. "Goldenfrost!" He lurched forward and collapsed next to his dead mentor, pressing his muzzle into the tom's blood-sodden, fluffy fur. "Goldenfrost... get up."

He barely heard pawsteps coming up behind him, and when he finally looked up, he saw a black she-cat standing next to him, her eyes dark with grief.

She said nothing and leaned down, gently nuzzling the apprentice. "Come with me," she murmured softly before turning and limping away from the dead warrior.

Copperpaw slowly heaved himself to his paws and turned away, only to stop. He then swung his head around and faced his dead mentor, blinking rapidly to clear his gaze, and let out another low moan of grief. Gritting his teeth, he turned away and looked up, seeing the black she-cat patiently waiting for him. Slowly, he limped after her like a kit following its mother, his thoughts muddled. _They killed three of my Clanmates..._ His vision began to blur once more. _Why would they do this to us? We've done nothing to them._

He staggered next to the black she-cat, his head low as he stared blankly at his milling, injured Clanmates, spotting Newtpaw pressing against a dark tortoiseshell comfortingly, and he faintly registered her as Lizardpaw's sister.

"Will you be alright if I left you to go check on Dawnpelt?"

His dark green gaze lifted up to the black she-cat, and he gave a weary nod. "I'll be fine, Pinenose," he mumbled.

Pinenose studied him for a moment through narrowed eyes before limping away toward the grieving, cream-furred she-cat still huddled over Lizardpaw's motionless body.

He wasn't alone for long until Flintpaw limped toward him, the dark tabby barely putting weight on his front right paw, blood soaking his pelt and turning it even darker. "Copperpaw...? Are you okay?"

Copperpaw stared at him before flattening his ears, his vision blurring yet again. "Goldenfrost is dead," he cracked, his voice shaking as he slumped to the ground with a small cry.

Flintpaw carefully settled himself down next to him, pressing his nose comfortingly against his muzzle. "I'm so sorry."

Copperpaw turned his head and pressed his muzzle against Flintpaw's neck, blinking open his eyes as he stared out blankly. However, he saw movement out of the corner of his eye, and turned his head, seeing Newtpaw standing close by.

"Rowanstar asked if we could get Brindlepaw," she rasped, flattening her ears. "I thought... I thought it would be a good thing for us to do."

 _Because we never got along_ , Copperpaw realized numbly before giving a small nod. Reluctantly, he pulled himself away from Flintpaw before glancing back at the other tom, watching as the tabby got to his feet slowly. "Thank you," he whispered before limping toward his sister, pressing his head against her shoulder.

Newtpaw gently nudged him, her eyes clouded with grief. She then began to limp away, and Copperpaw followed close behind.

He kept close to her side, neither of them speaking as they made their way gingerly toward the direction of the ThunderClan border, his heart growing heavier with each and every pawstep. He didn't even think about the possibility of the rogues coming back and finishing them off.

Once they reached their fallen sister, Newtpaw limped forward and pressed her muzzle against Brindlepaw's head, her voice cracking as she said, "I wish I hadn't been so mean to her."

Copperpaw said nothing, grief holding his tongue still in his jaws, and limped toward them, gently nudging Newtpaw. "We need to get back," he rasped.

His sister nodded, and the two carefully pulled Brindlepaw between them, careful not to trod on her cold body. Once more, the pair lapsed into silence as they carefully padded back, grief weighing heavily in the air.

To the dark brown apprentice, it felt as though moons had passed by the time he and Newtpaw brought Brindlepaw back to camp. His other Clanmates were already there, barely moving as he and his sister settled the dead apprentice next to the bodies of Lizardpaw and Goldenfrost.

Seeing his mentor against turned his vision misty as he stumbled away from his dead Clanmates, giving a small tabby tom and a cream-and-white she-cat room as they began to numbly prep Brindlepaw for vigil.

"ShadowClan," A dark ginger tom suddenly called, gaining the attention of his Clanmates. "We have lost three Clanmates today in an unnecessary battle. Tonight, we shall mourn them, but we shall also celebrate the lives that still make their home with us." He paused, gathering his emotions before rasping, "Tawnypelt, Owlclaw, and G-"

Copperpaw lowered his head, flattening his ears in grief when he realized his leader almost mentioned Goldenfrost, barely registering Flintpaw pressing up against him once more.

The leader cleared his throat. "Tawnypelt, Owlclaw, do you believe Flintpaw and Newtpaw are ready to become warriors?"

The two warriors let out a weak chorus of agreement.

"And I know that Goldenfrost would say the same with Copperpaw," the dark ginger tom murmured before lifting his head up and raising his voice. "Flintpaw, Newtpaw, and Copperpaw, please step forward."

Copperpaw didn't move until Flintpaw gently nudged him forward, and he then slowly limped in front of the crowd, lifting his head up toward his leader, feeling no excitement for what was about to happen.

"I, Rowanstar, leader of ShadowClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on these apprentices. They have trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend them to you as warriors in their turn." He took a deep breath before locking his gaze onto the apprentices, pride slowly pushing away the grief in his eyes. "Do you three promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

"I do," Newtpaw rasped, lifting her muzzle.

"I do," Flintpaw echoed.

Copperpaw took a deep breath before giving a slow nod. "I do."

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior names. From this moment, you will be known as Flintstripe, Newtpounce, and Copperclaw. StarClan honors your bravery, loyalty, and skill in battle, and we welcome you as full warriors of ShadowClan." The dark ginger tom dipped his head toward the weary apprentices before padding toward the small tabby medicine cat.

"Newtpounce! Flintstripe! Copperclaw!"

Copperclaw listened to the weary chants of his Clanmates, but still couldn't feel a spark of joy or excitement at the chanting. Instead, he turned away and limped over toward the body of his sister, almost believing that she was simply sleeping due to how peaceful the medicine cats made her appear. Slowly, he lowered his head down and rested his muzzle against Brindlepaw's cold pelt. "May StarClan light your path, sister," he whispered, grief tightening his throat. He never had gotten along with the mottled gray-and-white she-cat, but she was still his sister, and he knew she didn't deserve to die. Not her or Lizardpaw or Goldenfrost; all three should still be alive.

He lifted his muzzle, seeing a heavily pregnant white she-cat with a ginger tabby tail grieving as she crouched besides Goldenfrost, her body shaking with grief as pure white she-cat tried to comfort the queen. His heart dropped to his stomach as he turned away from her, not wanting to interrupt her grieving, and saw Dawnpelt huddled against the black-and-white deputy, the two grieving over their son, Lizardpaw. A dark tortoiseshell apprentice staggered over to them, her dark ginger belly stained with blood.

Suddenly feeling overwhelmed, Copperclaw staggered out of camp, not caring that he still needed his wounds to be checked, and crumpled next to the boulder that silently guarded the entrance to the camp. He lifted his head and stared up at the darkening sky through the top of the pines, praying that his fallen Clanmates were safely in StarClan.

He shuddered at the thought and looked down at his dark paws before turning his gaze once more up to the sky. "Why would you let this happen?" He whispered, his body shaking despite the warmth of greenleaf. "How could you let this happen, StarClan?"

 **Hoo boy, I ended up changing quite a bit in this chapter. There are changes in the chapter itself, and I also made some changes with ShadowClan's allegiance list.**

 **Lizardpaw's description was changed, and as a little fun fact, he was an exact replica of his father, Crowfrost. I removed a few elders as well, and gave Lizardpaw and Cedarpaw a sister for minor plot purposes. Light-tail also became Bright-tail, though I wanted to rename her Sunnytail or Suntail until I remembered that Sunnytail was a ShadowClan deputy in _Code of the Clans_ , and I already have a cat/OC with the prefix of Sun.**

 **I also changed Flintstripe's gender, as he was a she-cat in the first "version" of this story. With that being said, if you are homophobic, then I ask you stop reading this story, as it will play an important role with Copperclaw. I also don't want to deal with any homophobic BS, so please note if there are any comments related to it, it will simply be ignored. Any PMs involving homophobia will also be ignored.**

 **To put it frankly: If you don't like it, suck it up and move on.**

 **ShadowClan**

Leader: Rowanstar - dark ginger tom

Deputy: Crowfrost - black-and-white tom

Medicine Cat(s): Littlecloud - very small tabby tom

 _Apprentice, Cedarpaw_

Warriors:

Tawnypelt - tortoiseshell she-cat with green eyes

Owlclaw - light brown tabby tom

Scorchfur - dark gray tom

Tigerheart - dark brown tabby tom

Pinenose - black she-cat

Ferretclaw - cream-and-gray tom

Stoatfur - skinny ginger tom

 _Apprentice, Flamepaw_

Snowbird - pure white she-cat

Dawnpelt - cream-furred she-cat

Grassheart - pale brown tabby she-cat

Spikefur - dark brown tom

Newtpounce - gray she-cat

Copperclaw - dark brown tom with darker feet

Flintstripe - dark gray tom with black tabby stripes

Apprentices:

Cedarpaw - cream-and-white she-cat

Flamepaw - dark tortoiseshell she-cat with a dark ginger belly

Queens:

Bright-tail - white she-cat with a ginger tabby tail (expecting Goldenfrost's kits)

Elders:

Kinkfur - tabby she-cat with long fur that sticks out at all angles

Ivytail - black, white, and tortoiseshell she-cat

Ratscar - brown tom with a long scar across his back

 **Cats Killed in Battle**

Brindlepaw - mottled gray-and-white she-cat

Lizardpaw - small black-and-white tom

Goldenfrost - ginger-and-brown tom


	5. Chapter 4

A small dark ginger she-cat a little ways behind three warriors, ears swiveling around as she kept her jaws parted, scenting the air for danger. Her pelt prickled with unease as her thoughts drifted to the recent behaviors of the neighboring Clans, and she couldn't help but worry that a battle may arise soon. She shook her pelt, ridding the thought of war, but continued to fret over the Clans.

 _WindClan has been so hostile lately…_ A frown curled on her muzzle. _Graystripe says they've always been that way, but they've increased border patrols a quarter-moon ago at random. He also said that ShadowClan has always been hostile as well, but even they seem on edge._

With a small snort, the small she-cat shook her head and bounded toward the other cats, realizing she was falling behind, but her thoughts continued to wander. The ShadowClan border was as evident as ever, but no cat from her Clan had noticed any ShadowClan cats around. It unnerved her and her Clan, but for her, she knew something was wrong. She was sure the others did as well, but it seemed the suspicion outweighed the concern. _Is it against the warrior code to check on another Clan?_ She wondered, anxiety pricking her paws. _It's part of the warrior code to protect each other in case of danger… maybe ShadowClan has fallen? There was the scent of blood over the border a few sunrises ago. Maybe I can ask Shrewpaw to-_

"Littlepaw!"

The dark ginger she-cat's thoughts were interrupted and she shook her head, blinking as she gazed up at the white, ginger patched she-cat who now stood in front of her, her one eye narrowed. "Yes, Brightheart?"

"Are you alright?" Brightheart mewed, lowering her muzzle to sniff her apprentice. "You were falling behind."

Embarrassment flushed through Littlepaw's pelt and she ducked her head, flattening her ears. "Yeah, everything's fine. I was just thinking about ShadowClan and WindClan."

Brightheart sighed and turned away, padding back toward the two others. Littlepaw bounded after her, looking up as her mentor began to speak. "Littlepaw, I know you're concerned, but we can't barge into their territory demanding answers. If it's serious enough, Rowanstar or Onestar will get help."

Littlepaw said nothing in response, instead she padded alongside her mentor in silence, avoiding the stares of the dark cream she-cat and black, brown bellied tom when she and Brightheart caught up to them.

"I doubt Rowanstar would ask for help," the tom muttered, scowling. "He was against the Bramblestar's addition to the warrior code in the first place."

"Hush, Spiderleg," the dark cream she-cat snapped, and Littlepaw stifled a giggle when she saw Brightheart roll her eye in amusement. "If it was serious enough, I'm sure he will. He wouldn't let his Clan suffer!"

Spiderleg scoffed and shook his head, padding ahead while he muttered under his breath. The she-cat moved to follow, but Brightheart held her back with her tail. "Let him be, Rosepetal. It's no use arguing."

Rosepetal simply shrugged and padded on anyway, Brightheart quickly following suit.

However, Littlepaw hesitated and watched them go, glancing over the border that separated ThunderClan and ShadowClan once more, the fur along her spine rippling when she felt like she was being watched. Her tail lashed as she raked her blue gaze over the ShadowClan territory, hoping to see some kind of explanation, but saw nothing out of the ordinary. With a small sigh, she bounded after the others, wanting to get back to the camp as soon as possible to speak to her brothers.

She froze when she heard rustling from over the border and she swung her head in the direction of the noise, the blood beginning to roar in her ears as panic gripped her heart with its cold claws. _What was that?_

Frightened, she glanced over toward her Clanmates to see if they had heard it as well, but they carried on, not one reacting to the sound. "It's just my imagination," she breathed, quickly padding after them. "Just like wanting to travel beyond the mountains; neither means anything." Despite her self-encouragement, her belly felt heavy as a stone, fear trickling through her veins. Finally, she stopped, unable to shake the fear from her pelt. "Brightheart?" She called, forcing her voice to sound stronger than she felt.

The one-eyed she-cat stopped and turned around, padding back to her apprentice's side, her head tilted in worry. "What's wrong, Littlepaw?"

"I think we're being watched," she rasped and her body trembled. She dug her claws into the ground in annoyance, not wanting to sound weak. _This is no way for a warrior to behave,_ she thought angrily.

Brightheart blinked at the small apprentice sympathetically, pressing her nose to her ear. "We're not being watched," she assured. "Don't worry, we'll soon be back in camp." With a gentle smile, she turned and padded back toward the others.

Littlepaw stared at her mentor before forcing her paws to carry her after Brightheart, doing her best to ignore the sinking feeling now growing in her chest. She was thankful that her father had given her a patient, caring cat for a mentor and not someone who wasn't.

She shook her head when she realized her mind had wandered yet again and noticed in alarm that the patrol had disappeared through the undergrowth. Quickly, she scampered after them, heat searing her skin in embarrassment. _I'll never make a good warrior,_ she thought bitterly but then skidded to a halt, an unfamiliar scent catching her attention. With a small frown, she lifted her muzzle and parted her jaws, drinking it in to try and figure out what it was. She caught that it was cat, but realized with a jolt it wasn't a Clan scent. _The patrol!_

Fear seized the apprentice's body but she found her paws, crashing through the undergrowth blindly. _I need to warn them!_ Panic caused her to run faster, though her vision was muddled with it. _I need to tell them before it's too late!_ She tumbled through a thick clump of bracken without pausing to check the other side, and bowled right into Spiderleg, causing the long-legged warrior to stagger.

"Littlepaw, what in StarClan's name are you doing?" The tom sighed, rolling his eyes in exasperation as he caught his footing.

"We're being followed!" She blurted, her tail lashing in agitation. When she noticed Spiderleg exchange a glance with Rosepetal before the two stared at Brightheart, her heart dropped. "You don't believe me..." Her ears flattened, but the warriors paid no attention.

"Brightheart," he said, a low growl in his tone as he lashed his tail. "You really need to control your apprentice."

Her mentor flashed him a cold stare before turning to her apprentice. "Littlepaw," Brightheart began, her voice patient, but Littlepaw could hear her annoyance. "You need to stop this kit-like nonsense. You're almost a warrior, you should know better by now."

Littlepaw flinched from her words, dropping her gaze as she shuffled back, embarrassment and hurt searing through her ruffled pelt. "I'm being serious!" She cried, though her voice came out weak and shaky, betraying her words.

Before her mentor could speak, a nearby rustle caught the patrol's attention.

"What was that?" Rosepetal whispered, the fur along her spine bristling in alarm.

"Probably just the wind," Spiderleg replied gruffly, though sounded uncertain. "Brightheart? What do you think?"

The patched she-cat said nothing, lifting her muzzle to sniff the air. Her eye widened in alarm, and she turned her attention back to her frightened apprentice. "Run to camp and get help," she hissed, her voice barely above a whisper.

Littlepaw's fur fluffed out in alarm as she took a few steps back, cowering low to the ground as she continued to stare at her mentor.

"Go!" Brightheart snapped just as a battle cry rose near the ShadowClan border.

Without more hesitation, the apprentice spun around and charged through the undergrowth, hearing the patrol meet the unknown enemies with battle cries of their own. _They won't make it!_ She thought and picked up her pace, racing back toward the camp as fast as her short legs could carry her. _StarClan, don't let me be too late!_

She barreled toward the bramble-protected entrance, stumbling as her paws caught on the roots of a tree, but managed to skid into the center of camp, throwing dirt into the air as she came to a halt. Her sudden entrance started her Clanmates, most leaping to their paws with bristled fur as they stared at her in alarm and confusion.

"Littlepaw!" Her father bellowed, the dark tabby scrambling down from the leader's den, her mother hot on his paws, as he padded toward her in bewilderment. "What's wrong?"

"Battle!" She gasped, her sides heaving as she fought for breath, her legs trembling beneath her. "The others… they need help!"

Before her father could demand more answers, Brightheart darted into camp, Spiderleg close behind. Blood dripped from their deep wounds, but neither fell to the ground.

"More rogues are on their way!" Brightheart cried, her legs trembling.

"ThunderClan!" Bramblestar yowled, turning toward the anxious Clanmates as they quickly trickled into the clearing. "We're under attack!"

"Wait! Brightheart!" Littlepaw spun around to face her mentor, ears flattened and eyes wide. "Where's-"

Right after the words escaped his maw, a voice at the entrance cried, "Attack!"

As rogues flooded into the camp and the sounds of battle erupted around her, Littlepaw immediately darted toward the nursery, dodging the battling cats. "Cinderheart!" She gasped as she skidded to a halt inside the den, barely avoiding a startled swipe from the tabby queen. "We need to get you out of camp!"

"I'll help."

Littlepaw whipped around at the voice, relieved to see a brown tabby she-cat slipping into the den. "Leafpool, thank StarClan it's you," she breathed before turning back to the queen and her kits, gently picking up the black she-kit. The kit remained silent as Littlepaw followed Cinderheart and Leafpool out of the den, her heartbeat pounding quickly in her chest as she stayed close to the sides of the camp, praying that they would go unnoticed.

Carefully, she followed the other two behind a patch of brambles, freezing as she watched Leafpool carry a yellow tabby tom-kit up the side of the rock wall, her body trembling at the thought of climbing after them.

However, with a shaky inhale, she slowly followed Cinderheart up the steep edges, thankful that the kit she was carrying wasn't squirming about. In front of her, Cinderheart's paw slipped and Littlepaw felt her heart leap into her throat. Thankfully, the gray tabby queen was able to catch herself and keep going, a dark brown she-kit still clamped firmly in her jaws.

Once the three reached the top of the slope, Leafpool gently nudged the kit she had been carrying under a bush. Littlepaw placed the she-kit down and watched as the kit scampered over to her siblings, the three kits huddling together under the bush.

"I'm going back down to fight," Cinderheart mewed and Littlepaw let out a small cry.

"No! Cinderheart, what about your kits?" Leafpool demanded, her tail lashing.

The gray tabby queen remained undeterred and turned back toward the rock wall. "Lionblaze is down there," she reminded, voice sharp with anger. "I'm not going to sit back and watch my Clan fight." She then darted back down, leaving her kits in the care of the two other she-cats.

"I can stay, if you want," Littlepaw whispered, turning her head toward Leafpool as she stared at the tabby with large eyes.

Leafpool sighed and nodded, crouching low beside the bush that sheltered the three kits. "Please do," she whispered. "I'll need help if any rogues get up here."

Relieved, the apprentice nodded and padded toward the bush, standing guard as she listened to the sounds of battle. Anxiously, she dug her claws into the ground beneath her, praying to StarClan that her Clan would win the battle.

"What's going on?" One of the kits squeaked, and Littlepaw glanced toward Leafpool, waiting for the medicine cat to answer, but the brown tabby just stared at her calmly back in returned.

Awkwardly, Littlepaw cleared her throat and crouched down to the ground, peering into the bush at the three, wide-eyed kits. "Nothing to be worried about," she mewed softly, though from the stares she knew she couldn't fool them.

"I wanna help mama and papa fight!" The yellow tabby tom-kit squeaked, puffing out his chest.

"Me too!" The black she-kit squealed and the dark brown she-kit bobbed her head eagerly in agreement.

"None of you will be fighting now," Leafpool interrupted, turning her head toward them with narrowed amber eyes. "You three need to grow big and strong to do that."

"I'm gonna be just like papa!" The little tom boosted, and Littlepaw couldn't help but smile softly at the comment.

"I'm sure you will," Leafpool purred. "For now let the others fight the rogues. You'll see your fair share of battle in the future."

"Those rogues are just a bunch of kittypets," the dark brown kit scoffed, her eyes narrowing. "We could take them!"

"You sure about that?"

Littlepaw jumped to her paws and spun around, fur bristling in alarm as she stared at the large black tom, his lips pulled back to reveal his blood-stained teeth. Beside her, Leafpool bristled and let out a threatening growl, crouching in front of the kits protectively. "You won't lay a claw on them," she hissed, baring her teeth as well.

Littlepaw swallowed her fear and unsheathed her claws, crouching low as she wriggled her haunches, spitting angrily at the tom. _I'm a warrior,_ she reminded herself, her fear slowly ebbing away completely as determination and fury set in. _He'll be sorry for hurting my Clan!_

The tom sneered at them, unsheathing his own claws as he lashed his tail. "Oh, but I will. This territory will become ours!"

With that, he lunged toward Leafpool but Littlepaw intervened, throwing herself into his side to knock him off balance. The tom staggered and she quickly pulled back, lashing her tail as she faced him, her eyes narrowed into furious slits. "Over my dead body," she hissed and darted forward again, barely missing a blow from the large tom, and slipped under him, twisting onto her back to rake her claws through his belly.

The tom howled in pain and reared back, slamming his paws down before the apprentice could escape, pinning her. "You little rat," he snarled and, as quick as a viper, grabbed her throat in his jaws.

Littlepaw thrashed, a choked gasp escaping her maw as she felt his jaws close tighter around her throat, blood beading from the punctures his teeth left. Her ears began to ring, drowning out the sound of a fierce yowl. She stared up in amazement as Leafpool bowled into the tom, freeing her throat from his grasp.

She gasped for air, rolling onto her stomach as she panted for breath, shaking her head to rid herself of the ringing, body trembling in fear. She quickly spun toward the kits, seeing them huddled under the bush and fear and spun around once more, staring at the tussling rogue and medicine cat. With a cry, she raced toward them and rammed herself into the tom's side, throwing him off of Leafpool and sending both of them tumbling to the ground.

He snarled and scrambled to his paws, unsheathing his claws fully before slamming a heavy paw into the side of Littlepaw's head, sending her rolling away from him.

She laid still, gasping for breath as world pulled out of focus, a loud ringing echoing in her ears as pain shoot through her head, muffling the sounds of battle coming from the hollow and the insults streaming from the rogue. Numbly, she tried to heave herself to her paws, but slumped back down to the ground, unable to bring herself back into reality.

Littlepaw continued to lay there, the ringing soon becoming muffled and faded, and she could only watch as the large rogue pin down Leafpool as she continued to thrash in his grasp, and as he grabbed her white throat between his jaws and yank back.

Her mouth parted in a silent cry as the black tom kicked aside the medicine cat's lifeless body, and she struggled back to her paws again, her heart pounding faster and faster as the sounds began to grow louder and the world began to become clearer.

"Leafpool!"

The sound of one of the kits crying for the fallen tabby pulled Littlepaw back into reality suddenly, causing her to stagger as the sounds of battle began to overwhelm her senses. However, when she noticed the large tom stalk toward the three kits menacingly, did she manage to regain complete control of her paws.

Fury suddenly raced through Littlepaw's veins and she let out a caterwaul, scrambling to her paws before lunging at the tom, sinking her fangs into the scruff of his neck as she dug her claws deep into his back. As he howled in pain and staggered, she began to batter his spine with her hind legs, wanting to draw as much blood as possible. "You killed her!" She hissed around his fur before clamping her teeth in deeper, hearing a pained snarl come from the tom. He reared back but she held on, digging her claws firmly into his back to remain in place.

The tom crashed back down onto his paws before falling onto his side, rolling onto his back and pinning the apprentice beneath him.

Littlepaw released her grip, squirming to try and get him to get off before he crushed her under his weight. The tom then heaved himself to his paws and, before he could attack, she rolled out of the way, scrambling to her paws and standing protectively in front of the bush, heaving for breath.

The rogue spat and crouched down, tail tip flicking as he stared at her with slit eyes. He lunged forward, lashing out a paw and catching the side of the apprentice's face, sending her stumbling toward the edge.

With a small cry, the dark ginger apprentice dug her claws into the ground, feeling blood trickle down her wounds, and briefly glanced over the edge into the hollow below, her blue eyes wide. With a growl, she narrowed her eyes once more and darted awkwardly toward the rogue, her bones crying out in pain from being crushed. Angrily, she batted his muzzle with unsheathed claws, darting to the side to avoid another blow.

"I'll get help!"

Littlepaw swung her head around, eyes widening in horror as she watched as the little yellow tabby tom-kit dart out from under the bush and toward the ledge, getting ready to climb down into the hollow.

"Fernkit! No, don't!" She lunged toward the kit to grab him but let out a shriek of pain, the rogue clutching her tail tightly in his jaws as he dragged her away from the kit, eyes glittering in malice.

Rage sparked inside her heart and she yowled, twisting her body to lunge at the rogue, clotting her unsheathed paw over his ear before raking her claws through the thin skin.

Stunned, the tom let out a cry of pain and released her tail before staggering back, shaking his head and scattering drops of blood across the small clearing.

Littlepaw quickly spun back around and lunged back toward the ledge, just as she heard a small, frightened squeal. "Fernkit!" She cried, paws skidding to a halt as she looked down. The little tom-kit was hanging onto the rock wall with his front paws, eyes wide in fear.

"Help me!" He wailed and Littlepaw strained her neck to reach him, but couldn't.

Quickly, she flattened herself to the ground, pressing her belly against the blood-splattered dirt, and reached out a paw toward the terrified kit. Her claws dug into the ground beneath her to steady herself, and time seemed to slow as she spread out her toes, stretching them to the limit as she hook her sheathed, white paw underneath Fernkit. "I need you to trust me," she rasped, her voice calmer than she felt.

He nodded, staring up at her with large, frightened eyes.

With a deep breath, she began to pull the yellow tabby kit up to her, making sure to go slow to prevent him from falling. As soon as he was close to her, Littlepaw quickly grabbed his scruff in her jaws, hauling him up the side of the cliff before scrambling back to the bush, gently setting the kit down.

Fernkit let out a small cry of distress and buried himself into Littlepaw's belly, his body shaking.

"Hush, little one," she rasped, soothingly rasping his tongue over his head before she nudged him underneath the shrub to his siblings. As his sister huddled next to him, she spun around and faced the large tom, crouching low to the ground as her tail lashed, the fur along her spin lifter as she stared at him furiously.

The tom, staggered, focusing his rage-filled gaze onto the apprentice, and crouched down, staring at her right in the eyes as he bunched his muscles, preparing to pounce. Before he had the chance to do so, a caterwaul rang out behind him and he spun around, ears flattening as warriors crept out from behind the undergrowth.

"Snowclaw!" Littlepaw cried, relief flooding her veins when she saw the white tom leading the four, battle-ragged Clanmates.

The rogue bristled and snarled, arching his back as he stepped away from the patrol, realizing he was defeated.

"Get out of here," Snowclaw hissed, baring his teeth at the large tom.

With a spat, the rogue disappeared into the undergrowth, an eerie cry for the others to retreat echoing as he vanished.

Littlepaw darted toward the white tom, her wounded tail curling in delight as she pressed her nose against his jaw. "Thank StarClan you came," she breathed, and the tom let out a low purr. However, she suddenly jerked away from the tom, startling him, and staggered away, feeling the burning gazes of her Clanmates as she pressed her muzzle against the fallen medicine cat's shoulder. "Oh, Leafpool…" she whispered, feeling the tabbyt's cold fur against her nose as her body trembled in pain and in grief. Her vision blurred and she pulled away, falling back onto her haunches.

"Why isn't she getting up?" A small voice squeaked behind her, and she turned, watching as the kits crawled out from under the bush. Quickly, she darted over to them, blocking their view of the medicine cat.

"Don't worry about her, little ones," she rasped, glancing up just as Snowclaw padded toward them, his eyes grim.

"Let's get you three back to camp," he rumbled and leaned down, picking up the black she-kit in his jaws before padding away.

"We can take Fernkit and Sorrelkit," a voice mewed and Littlepaw blinked, turning her head toward a ginger she-cat and gray tabby tom. Wearly, she nodded and watched as they picked up the two kits, padding away after Snowclaw. She got to her paws and limped toward Leafpool, falling to the ground as she pressed her nose into the medicine cat's fur, body shaking. She winced when she felt a tail rest on her shoulders and slowly lifted her muzzle, seeing a large brown-and-cream tom staring down at her sympathetically.

"Come on, Littlepaw," he whispered, dipping his head and gently touching his nose to her ear. "Let's bring her back to camp."

Numbly, the dark ginger apprentice nodded and shakily got to her paws, grateful for the tom's silent support, and carefully lifted Leafpool's body up off the ground, padding alongside the warrior in silence, grief filling her heart. _I'm so sorry, Leafpool…_

A wail echoed around camp once Littlepaw and the tom limped into camp with the medicine cat's body, and she watched in grief as he mother came running out, her dark green eyes wide in alarm. Carefully, Littlepaw and the tom rested Leafpool's body down in the center of camp, stepping away quietly. "Thank you, Molewhisker," she murmured and Molewhisker nodded, dipping his head before limping away. She swallowed and turned toward her mother, seeing her crouched over Leafpool's body as she grieved. "Squirrelflight," she rasped, wincing when she saw her mother look up with misty eyes.

Before she could speak, her body shook and she lowered her head, whimpering in grief.

"Oh, Littlepaw," Squirrelflight rasped and staggered over to her, carefully rasping her tongue over her daughter's head.

"I could've saved her," the apprentice whimpered, burying herself against her mother's side.

"There was nothing you could've done differently," her mother whispered soothingly, gently pulling her closer. "You did your best, Littlepaw. Leafpool knows that."

Littlepaw nodded and pulled away, lowering her head as she stared down at her blood-stained paws. She then turned her head back to her mother and just stared as Squirrelflight limped back toward Leafpool's body, seeing an elderly, pale ginger she-cat join her. She gazed around the camp, seeing her battered Clanmates examining the damage done and grieving over their fallen Clanmates. She staggered back, ears flattening in horror when she realized that Leafpool hadn't been the only one who was killed; Spiderleg, Rosepetal, and Mousewhisker had been slain as well, all four of them now lying in the center of camp.

"Littlepaw! You're okay!" She turned her head, watching as a pale ginger, white bellied tom and a dark brown tabby tom scurry over to her.

"We couldn't find you," the dark brown tabby added, both halting when they reached her.

"I was watching Cinderheart's kits," she rasped, relieved to see that her brothers were alive. "Where's Bramblestar?"

The pale tom flicked his ear and Littlepaw turned her head in the same direction, spotting their father carefully making his way onto the Highledge. She then turned her gaze away, searching for the kits and was relieved when she spotted them with their parents by the nursery.

Her attention was quickly jerked back toward her father when he yowled, "Cats of ThunderClan, this battle was unprovoked. Because of it, if you come across those rogues again…" He trailed off and gazed at the dead cats before continuing. "The warrior code tells us not to kill, but if you come across them again in a fight, kill them. They have taken the lives of Spiderleg, Mousewhisker, Rosepetal, and Leafpool, something we cannot forgive them for doing. You all fought bravely, so tonight we shall mourn our Clanmates and rest." With that, he dipped his head and turned away, limping back down to the hollow.

"Well," the dark tabby apprentice mewed quietly, gaining the attention from his siblings. "I need to go help Jayfeather." He dipped his head to them and then bounded toward the medicine cat den.

"Shrewpaw wasn't hurt," Littlepaw whispered, blinking in surprise. "Where was he?"

"He and Briarlight were inside the medicine cat den during the battle," her brother replied, rasping his tongue over a bleeding paw. "Jayfeather was guarding the outside of it to prevent any of the rogues from destroying the herbs." Carefully, he got to his feet, favoring the bleeding paw, his eyes narrowed.

The dark ginger she-cat followed his gaze and a small purr bubbled in her throat when she spotted Snowclaw limping over.

"I'm gonna go check on Purdy," the pale tom growled and limped away, his tail lashing irritably.

Littlepaw frowned at her brother before turning back toward the wounded white warrior, her heart fluttering. "Are you okay?" She asked, pressing her nose to him when he sat down next to her.

"Just a few wounds," he assured, flicking an ear. "What's wrong with Sunpaw?"

Littlepaw glanced over at her brother and sighed, shaking her head. "I don't know," she admitted quietly.

Snowclaw scoffed and shook his head. "I'm glad _my_ brother was never like that."

The apprentice felt a pang of annoyance at the warrior's tone but said nothing in response. Instead, she got to her paws, legs still shaky. "I'm going to visit Jayfeather," she mewed softly and limped away toward the medicine cat's den, ears flattening as she walked by her dead Clanmates, heart clenching in grief.

"Littlepaw?"

She stopped and turned, surprised to see a golden-brown tabby tom limping toward her, his proud head lifted despite the heavy wounds across his body. "Yes, Lionblaze?"

"Thank you for protecting my kits." He turned his head toward Leafpool, pain evident in his eyes, and she remembered with a pang the medicine cat was his mother. "Fernkit told us how you saved him from falling."

The apprentice could only dip her head, unsure of what to say. "Of course," she rasped and Lionblaze dipped his head in return, turning away back toward his mate and kits. She watched them briefly before limping on, spotting Shrewpaw working quickly alongside a blind, gray tabby tom. Littlepaw stopped, wondering if she should wait until the others got their wounds checked first, but the blind medicine cat had already scented her.

"Hurry up," he snapped, swinging his head in her direction. "The faster I can treat you the better."

Despite her grief and physical pain, a small purr of amusement found its way out of her maw and she awkwardly bounded over to him, only to feel her heart sink once more when he mind wandered back toward her dead Clanmates and the urge to travel beyond the mountains came back as strong as ever.

 **Mostly detail changes took place in this chapter and, frankly, I think the previous chapter is going to have the most changes to it.**

 **ThunderClan**

Leader: Bramblestar - dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes

Deputy: Squirrelflight - dark ginger she-cat with green eyes

Medicine Cat: Jayfeather - gray tabby tom with blind blue eyes

 _Apprentice, Shrewpaw_

Warriors:

Brackenfur - golden-brown tabby tom

 _Apprentice, Sunpaw_

Cloudtail - long-haired white tom with blue eyes

Brightheart - white she-cat with ginger patches

 _Apprentice, Littlepaw_

Thornclaw - golden-brown tabby tom

Birchfall - light brown tabby tom

Whitewing - white she-cat with green eyes

Berrynose - cream-colored tom

Poppyfrost - tortoiseshell she-cat

Lionblaze - golden tabby tom with amber eyes

Briarlight - dark brown she-cat with sky blue eyes; paralyzed in her hindquarters

Blossomfall - tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat

Bumblestripe - very pale gray tom with black stripes

Dovewing - pale gray she-cat

Ivypool - silver-and-white tabby she-cat with dark blue eyes

Cherryfall - ginger she-cat

Molewhisker - brown-and-cream tom

Lilyheart - dark tabby she-cat with white patches

Stormcloud - gray tabby tom

Amberfur - pale ginger she-cat

Dewpelt - gray tom

Snowclaw - white tom

Apprentices:

Shrewpaw - dark brown tabby tom

Sunpaw - pale ginger tom with white underbelly

Littlepaw - small dark ginger she-cat

Queens:

Daisy - cream long-furred she-cat from the horseplace

Cinderheart - gray tabby she-cat (mother to Hollykit, black she-kit, Sorrelkit, dark brown she-kit, and Fernkit, yellow tabby tom-kit)

Elders:

Purdy - plump tabby tom with a gray muzzle; former loner

Sandstorm - pale ginger she-cat with green eyes

Graystripe - long-haired gray tom

Millie - striped gray tabby she-cat with blue eyes

 **Cats Killed in Battle**

Leafpool - light brown tabby she-cat with amber eyes

Spiderleg - long-limbed black tom with brown underbelly and amber eyes

Rosepetal - dark cream she-cat

Mousewhisker - gray-and-white tom


	6. Chapter 5

"You lied to us, Sol!" A large black tom snarled, pacing back-and-forth in front of a long-haired tortoiseshell tom, his tail whipping angrily.

The tortoiseshell tom, Sol, watched the black tom with disinterest, his demeanor calm as the rogue continued to pace. "I never lied to you," he stated simply, earning a hiss from the rogue.

"You told us those Clan cats would be easy to defeat!" He shoved his face into the tom's, ears flattened and teeth bared. "We were lucky they follow that stupid code you told us about! But now I can't send my cats into battle because they _will_ kill us!"

Sol rolled his eyes in annoyance, getting to his paws and padded away, the large tom quickly striding after him. "I tried to tell you to attack one Clan at a time," he sniffed, flicking his tail. "Eliminate one Clan first before moving onto the next. I didn't tell you to attack one and then move on to another. You're right, you can't send your cats back into battle now because the Clan cats are going to team up and kill all of you." He stopped walking suddenly, eyes narrowing in thought.

"You told us you were going to help us get our own territory," the black tom hissed, stopping in front of the tortoiseshell tom.

"And I shall keep my promise, Crowley," Sol growled, lashing his tail. "You want your own territory? Very well, but you won't get it here now that you ruined your chance of taking down the Clans."

"Where else can we go?" Crowley snapped, digging his claws into the ground. "The mountains are of no interest to us and there isn't enough food in the nofur's territory."

Sol smirked, lifting his muzzle as he stared at the black tom, tail curling in delight. "That's because you haven't heard about SkyClan."

"Another Clan?" The rogue stared at the other tom in disbelief, causing the tom to purr and turn away, padding back toward the direction of the other rogues.

"SkyClan lives in a gorge far away from here," the tortoiseshell tom purred, flicking an ear. "They have plenty of prey and a large territory, and they're alone. There's no other Clans near them, so you won't have to worry about them getting help. Not only that, but they have daylight-warriors."

"Daylight-warriors?" Crowley echoed, limping alongside Sol as he narrowed his eyes in confusion, his anger quickly ebbing.

"Kittypets who stay with the Clan during the day and then go running back to their… nofurs, at night," Sol explain, smirking when he noticed he had gained the rogue's attention. "I know their ways; I was once a part of their Clan until they unfairly accused me of stealing their kits when I was merely trying to rescue them. I can tell you how they act, provided that you let me stay with you once you've defeated them."

The two toms stopped walking and Crowley stared at Sol uncertainly, his tail tip twitching before he finally dipped his head. "Very well," he rumbled. "You tell us everything you know about them, and in return we shall give you shelter."

 **Basically nothing changed in this chapter, though I did add a bit more to Sol's dialogue. Other than that, it's a filler chapter explaining what to expect later on.**


	7. Chapter 6

Shrewpaw padded alongside Jayfeather, his dark tabby fur bristling in unease as the two remained alert for any sign of the rogues. The night was silent, the moon glowing brightly as it slowly climbed in the sky, lighting their way. They slowed when they neared the lake and Jayfeather stopped suddenly, his ears swiveling.

Immediately alarmed, Shrewpaw froze, listening as well, but heard nothing. He lifted his muzzle, parting his jaws to scent the air but still there was nothing. Awkwardly, he flattened his fur and asked quietly, "Why did you stop?"

"I'm waiting for Littlecloud and Cedarpaw," Jayfeather grunted, flicking his tail. "I want to speak to them about the rogues before we catch up with the others."

The dark tabby apprentice nodded and sat down, gazing into the moonlit water in silence. He was still deeply troubled from the battle, but what troubled him the most was the fact it was unprovoked. His father had been right in saying that and, no matter how hard he thought about it, he couldn't find a reason to explain the rogues attacking his Clan. With a small sigh, he stood and padded closer toward the water, sitting down once more before dipping his paw into the lake. The cool water lapped at his pads, breaking the stillness of the lake as ripples lazily drifted out.

The scent of ShadowClan filled his nose and he swiveled his ears toward it before glancing over, watching as an old, small tabby tom limp along near the shore, a cream-and-white she-cat padding alongside him.

"Littlecloud!" Jayfeather called in greeting, getting to his paws as he nodded toward the ShadowClan medicine cats.

"Good seeing you, Jayfeather," Littlecloud rasped, dipping his head. "You as well, Shrewpaw."

Shrewpaw dipped his head and watched as the old tom limped along toward his mentor, the two medicine cats padding toward the direction of the Moonpool as they began to speak in hushed tones. He bounded after them, glancing over at the she-cat, narrowing his eyes in concern when he saw how ragged her appearance was. "Cedarpaw," he mewed, voice soft. "Are you okay?"

Cedarpaw glanced over at him, her dark blue eyes dull with tiredness and grief. "No," she admitted quietly. "A group of rogues attacked ShadowClan about a quarter-moon ago, and they killed my brother." She flattened her ears and shook her head, turning her gaze back onto the cats in front of them. "Where's Leafpool?"

"I'm sorry to hear that," the dark tabby whispered before flinching, lowering his head. "ThunderClan was attacked by rogues two days ago and… Leafpool didn't make it." He heaved a sigh, lifting his head up toward the moon, relying on his memory to guide his pawsteps safely. "They killed three other Clanmates, though I can't figure out why they attacked us."

Cedarpaw stared at him in surprise, eyes widening. "We lost two other Clanmates as well as my brother," she mewed, choosing her words carefully. "The rogues had ambushed the battle patrol; sent six cats in to distract them while the others came up from the side. It would've been worse if Copperclaw hadn't alerted them, I think."

Now it was Shrewpaw's turn to stare at her in surprise. "They did the same to us," he blurted, then ducked his head when he saw the two toms in front of them glance back toward them. "Well, sort of. Six of them ambushed a border patrol and then the rest followed Brightheart and Spiderleg back to camp."

The cream-and-white she-cat shook her head in disbelief, slowly coming to a stop when their mentors halted in wait for the other medicine cats. "I can't believe that," she murmured quietly, shaking her head. "I don't understand…"

"I don't either," Shrewpaw admitted quietly before swinging his head toward the WindClan territory, spotting three cats racing toward them. "Do you think WindClan and RiverClan were attacked as well?"

"We should ask them," Cedarpaw mewed and waved her tail in greeting to the gray tabby she-cat who came bounding up to them, the dappled golden she-cat and the gray-brown, white spotted tom going toward Jayfeather and Littlecloud.

"Sorry to keep you waiting," the she-cat panted, dipping her head. "Pouncetail got an infection that we needed to take care of before we left."

"Don't worry about it," Shrewpaw replied, following the four older cats as they began to travel up to the Moonpool, sticking close together. They walked in silence for a few moments, all on edge, when he finally whispered, "Willowshine, was RiverClan attacked by rogues recently?"

Willowshine glanced at him in surprise. "A few quarter-moons ago, yes. Same with WindClan, actually."

"This really doesn't make sense," Cedarpaw muttered, lowering her head. "They attacked ShadowClan and ThunderClan as well. Did they kill anyone?"

The gray tabby RiverClan cat sighed, turning her gaze away sadly. "They killed Havenheart and Mintfur during the battle." She flicked an ear, lifting her head and nodded toward the gray-brown tom. "Kestrelflight told us they killed Lichenspirit during the battle, and Crouchfoot died from his wounds later on. Did your Clans lose anyone?"

"Lizardpaw, Brindlepaw, and Goldenfrost," the ShadowClan apprentice murmured, flattening her ears. "Brindlepaw was ambushed before the attack."

Shrewpaw shook his head slowly, glancing over toward the other medicine cats ahead of them as they began to slowly pick their way up the hill. "Spiderleg, Roseptal, Mousewhisker, and Leafpool," he rasped, hearing a small gasp come from Willowshine. "Rosepetal was killed in an ambush as well. Bramblestar ordered us to kill the rogues if we fight them again because of it." He waited for Cedarpaw or Willowshine to protest, but neither did, and the three fell into silence as they scrambled after their fellow medicine cats. "Maybe StarClan will give us answers."

"I hope they do," Willowshine murmured as they carefully slipped down into a tunnel, padding toward the starlit pool that lay hidden. She dipped her head to the two apprentice and padded toward the dappled golden she-cat.

Shrewpaw nodded toward Cedarpaw and bounded after Jayfeather, making his way around Kestrelfeather as he settled down next to the blind tom at the pool. With a deep breath, he reached his neck forward and lapped up some of the water as the moon hit the pool, causing it to shine brightly. His eyes quickly grew heavy and he rested his head on his paws, welcoming the darkness that came.

When the apprentice opened his eyes again, he found himself in a bountiful forest, sun dappling his pelt through the leaves. A gray-and-white tom padded out from underneath a bush in front of him and Shrewpaw purred in relief, curling his tail. "Mousewhisker! It's good to see you again!"

"Follow me," Mousewhisker instructed before turning away, darting into the forest.

Startled, Shrewpaw hared after him, not wanting to lose the StarClan warrior, and soon skidded into a meadow. He stopped, staring in amazement as Mousewhisker padded toward Leafpool. "Jayfeather!" He cried, turning his head to see his mentor staring at the brown tabby. "What are you doing here?"

Jayfeather turned and stared at his apprentice in surprise. "Leafpool lead me here," he replied and swung his gaze back toward his mother, ears flattening in confusion.

Just then, Cedarpaw bounded out into the clearing as well, chasing a small black-and-white tom. She stared at the two toms in surprise before a ginger-and-brown tom hared out of the undergrowth, followed shortly by Littlecloud.

"What is going on?" The old ShadowClan cat demanded, but silence followed his words.

Shrewpaw whipped his head toward the right, watching in stunned amazement as Kestrelflight exploded into the meadow, hot on a dark tortoiseshell she-cat's paws. The WindClan medicine cat halted, staring at the others in confusion before turning his gaze back onto the StarClan cats.

It wasn't long until Willowshine joined them, following a black-and-white she-cat. The dappled golden she-cat was the last to make her way to them, stopping beside her Clanmate as a pale gray tabby tom took his place among the StarClan cats.

"What is going on?" The dappled medicine cat demanded, eyes narrowing in confusion.

"Hush, Mothwing," a voice rumbled, startling the medicine cats.

Shrewpaw bristled and took a step back, watching in amazement as matted dark gray tom padded into the clearing, standing in front of the new additions to StarClan.

"Who are you?" Mothwing growled, flattening her ears at the strange tom.

The tom flicked an ear, briefly ignoring her question as he swept his gaze across the medicine cats. "My name is Skywatcher, though your Clanmates will not know who I am. I have come to deliver a message that all of you must hear, but you cannot tell any cat about it until the next gathering. It is then and only then that you can reveal what I'm about to say to every cat there, and it is then and only then that you will know who you are looking for." Before any cat could ask questions, the tom straightened and his eyes glowed. " _Air, darkness, water, and sky. One of each blood shall travel to save the forgotten Clan from a threat once thought to be forgotten._ " When he finished, he dipped his head to them and took a step back.

"What forgotten Clan?" Littlecloud cried but the tom refused to listen, instead staring at them with a burning gaze.

"Remember my words," he growled, flattening his ears. "And do whatever it takes to make sure that it is heeded, or it could spell doom for them once and for all."

Shrewpaw opened his jaws to ask who 'they' were, but the StarClan cats faded from view and he fell into blackness.

With a cry, he shot to his paws, blinking open his eyes as he gasped for breath, seeing his fellow medicine cats scramble to their paws as well, confusion ruffling their pelts. "Y-you all had the same dream, right?" He called, his voice wobbling with anxiety.

"With Skywatcher?" Mothwing answered, shaking her pelt. "I did."

A small chorus of agreement echoed from the others and Shrewpaw forced himself to flatten his fur, but his head still reeled from the tom's words. _Air, darkness, water, and sky…_

"He was obviously talking about our Clans," Jayfeather grumbled, sitting down as he swiped a paw over his ears. "But what forgotten Clan? There's always been four living Clans."

"He said we can't talk about it to anyone else until the gathering," Cedarpaw brought up nervously. "What should we tell our leaders when we get back?"

"Nothing," Kestrelflight rasped, shaking his head. "Or tell them that our Clanmates are faring well in StarClan, but mention nothing of what this 'Skywatcher' said. If he's right, we'll figure it out then."

Troubled silence fell over the medicine cats as they began to stretch out their muscles and leave the Moonpool behind. Shrewpaw padded close to Jayfeather, trying to figure out the prophecy Skywatcher had given him, but could still think of nothing. _Is Jayfeather right when Skywatcher mentioned air, darkness, water, and sky?_ The dark tabby thought, flicking his tail anxiously as he said his goodbyes to the WindClan and RiverClan medicine cats. _Then does 'one of each blood' mean one cat from each Clan? But travel where and what forgotten Clan?_ He shook his head to clear his mind before saying his goodbyes to the ShadowClan medicine cats as they parted. For a heartbeat, Shrewpaw was tempted to ask Jayfeather about it, but decided to stay silent as he followed the blind tabby back to camp, his mentor obviously troubled by the prophecy as well. _This all must have something to do with those rogues… but what?_

 **I thought I had credit to the person that made the prophecy, but I guess not anymore? Anyway, the wonderful IWalkBlindlyIntoTheShadows created the prophecy for this story (via the fic "Echoleap's Prophecies"). They also made another prophecy for me to use, but that won't appear until later on in the story.**

 **Also, I'm still very aware that Sandstorm knows about Skywatcher, and Bramblestar possibly knows about him as well, but I didn't want the tom in question to list two cats at random and tell the medicine cats not to ask them about him or the "mysterious" Clan.**


	8. Chapter 7

Littlepath sat next to the lake, her tail curled tightly around her paws, though she was careful not to rub off the poultice on her wounds. Her blue-gray gaze was locked onto the distant, fading outline of the mountains, her paws itching for her to get up and run to them, but she ignored it.

Ever since the attack on ThunderClan happened, the rogues had simply disappeared. There was no sign of them, no scent, and, when questioned, border patrols from ShadowClan and WindClan both reported that they hadn't seen the rogues recently either.

Her claws dug into the ground beneath her, ignoring the water trickling between her toes. Ever since the battle, the urge to travel beyond the mountain came back and dug its claws into her pelt, stubbornly refusing to leave her alone no matter how hard she tried to ignore it. Despite being a warrior, she could hardly focus and was constantly messing something up.

With a small sigh, she lowered her head, knowing how she was proving herself to be a disappointment to ThunderClan. _I can't even come back with decent prey_ , she thought bitterly, curling her lip. _Sunheart and Shrewpaw pity me…_ She shook her head and lifted it, gazing up at the darkening sky. _At least Bramblestar is letting me go to the Gathering, anyway._ With the flick of her ear she got to her paws, turning away from the lake, and slowly padded back toward camp, her paws dragging. _Maybe I should mention it to Shrewpaw and Jayfeather to hear what they think._ She shook her head angrily at the thought. _No, they'll just call be a mouse-brain like Snowclaw did. He's right, it's nothing more than just some dumb feeling._

Littlepath froze when she heard rustling behind her and she quickly spun around, unsheathing her claws as she pressed her belly against the forest floor, ready to attack. A white tom bounded out of the undergrowth and she let out a small sigh of relief, standing up. "Snowclaw! You scared me!"

The tom scoffed and sat down, rasping his tongue over a paw and drawing it over his head. "The rogues are gone, there's nothing to worry about." He paused, narrowing his eyes at her. "Were you thinking of leaving again?" When she turned her gaze away he snorted and scowled. "Littlepath, you can't do that! It's a mouse-brained idea to go wandering off to the mountains! You don't even have a reason to go!"

Anger burned her skin and Littlepath flattened her ears, turning away from the tom and picked up her pace back to camp. She heard him bound after her, and even when he padded alongside her, she refused to meet his gaze.

"Littlepath," he murmured, voice softer. "I don't want you to go." He bounded in front of her and stopped, forcing her to stop as well. "I didn't mention this sooner, but you were really good with Cinderheart's kits."

She lifted her head to him, her gaze softening. "Thank you, Snowclaw, but I know you. What are you getting at?"

Snowclaw just shrugged and continued back toward camp, the small she-cat racing after him. "I just wanted you to know that," he meowed, purring. "You'd make a great mother one day."

"Perhaps," Littlepath murmured, narrowing her eyes at the tom in confusion but, before she could ask again what he wanted to say, they reached the bramble barrier to camp and Snowclaw disappeared inside. With a small sigh she darted after him, shaking her fur as she stopped inside the hollow. There, she spotted Sunheart waving his tail at her, and she bounded away from the white warrior and to her brother.

"Just in time," Sunheart purred. "Bramblestar wants to get to the gathering early."

"But the sun just went down!"

"Not now, but soon enough, and he wants every cat in camp."

The small warrior huffed and shook her head. "Is it wise leaving Squirrelflight here?"

The pale ginger tom shrugged. "I think so. That way if the rogues come back, they still have a cat to guide them. I still think Shrewpaw or Jayfeather should stay here, though."

"At least Briarlight and Brightheart know enough about herbs in case something happens," Littlepath pointed out. "Besides, nothing's going to stop those two from going to the gathering. They're really anxious to be there."

"True," Sunheart sighed, twitching his whiskers. "So… what happened between you and Snowclaw out there?"

Littlepath narrowed her blue eyes when she saw a flash of anger in Sunheart's eyes and she scowled. "We caught up with each other on the way back to camp. What's your problem, anyway?"

"He's not a good cat!" Sunheart hissed, flattening his ears. "I've heard how he talks to you! That's not a way a cat should treat someone they love!" He gaze softened and he sighed, shaking his head. "I just don't want my sister getting hurt."

The small warrior sighed as well and pressed her nose to her brother's reassuringly. "He's a great cat, Sunheart. I know he seems rude but… he doesn't mean it. You don't need to worry about me." Her brother just snorted in disbelief, and she let out a low growl in return, flattening her ears. "I'm going to go check on the kits." She got to her paws and padded toward the nursery, swishing her tail in annoyance despite the sharp pangs. When she neared the three siblings, however, her irritation faded, a purr escaping her throat when she heard them squeal when they saw her. The kits bundled toward her and tackled her and, despite the pain she felt from them disturbing her wounds, she let out a dramatic groan and fell to the ground, careful not to hurt the kits.

"We got you!" Fernkit crowed and Littlepath let out a small chuckle, opening one of her eyes.

"Yes you did," she purred and the kits hopped off, allowing the small warrior to scramble to her paws.

"Careful, you three," a voice called from the entrance toward the nursery. "Littlepath is still hurt!"

"It's alright, Daisy," Littlepath called back to the cream-furred she-cat, a purr still evident in her voice. "They're being very good."

The kits puffed out their chests and Fernkit blurted, "I wanna be your apprentice, Littlepath!"

"But I already said that earlier," the dark brown she-kit whined, pawing at her brother's tail.

Panic flashed through the warrior's veins and she bristled, forcing herself to flatten her fur so she wouldn't alarm the kits. "Bramblestar will pick your mentors for you," she interrupted, keeping her voice gentle, but her mind spun. She could hardly keep up with her duties, there was no way she would be able to teach an apprentice the makings of a warrior when she couldn't even act like one herself! "He'll make sure to find a warrior best fitting for you three."

"I told you," the black she-kit snorted to her siblings, but her eyes were bright with playfulness.

"Oh, hush, Hollykit!" The dark she-kit whined and tackled into her sister, the two tussling in the dirt.

Fernkit frowned and scooted closer toward Littlepath, staring up at her with large eyes. "But if I ask politely enough, do you think he will make me your apprentice?"

The dark ginger warrior flattened her ears and crouched down so she was eye-level with the tom-kit. "He'll make sure your mentor is an excellent warrior," she assured.

"But you saved me!" Fernkit puffed out his chest, bouncing on his paws. "I wanna be just like you!"

 _No, you don't, little one_ , the warrior thought, but just offered a small purr, sitting up. "Don't worry about it now, Fernkit. You have plenty of time until you're apprenticed."

The yellow striped kit huffed and lowered his head. "Yeah, a full five moons," he groaned and the warrior couldn't help but purr in amusement.

"Go on," she mewed, gently nudging him toward his sisters with her one white paw. "Until then, have fun as a kit." She watched as the little tom bounded over toward his sisters, bowling into them, and briefly thought back to what Snowclaw had mentioned to her earlier. _But do I really want kits?_ Her pelt prickled anxiously and she shook her head, getting to her paws and padding away from the nursery to leave the kits to play. A yowl interrupted her thoughts and she glanced up, spotting Bramblestar by the entrance to the hollow, waiting for the others to head out to the Gathering. She spotted Squirrelflight standing next to him, the two murmuring quietly to each other. With a sharp breath, she felt a surge of excitement at the realization that it was going to be her first Gathering as a warrior and raced over toward her brothers.

"Isn't this exciting?" Sunheart purred, his eyes bright as he kneaded the ground, tail tip twitching.

"It sure is," Littlepath agree with a purr of her own, but noticed Shrewpaw staring off into the distance, eyes clouded in thought. "You okay there, Shrewpaw?" She gently bopped his nose with her white paw and the dark brown tabby tom blinked and shook his head, focusing his attention on her.

"What?"

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, just… thinking. Medicine cat stuff. The usual." Shrewpaw puffed up his pelt a bit and hopped to his paws. "I'm gonna go talk to Jayfeather." He then turned and bounded off toward his mentor.

Littlepath and Sunheart exchanged confused glances, but before they could follow, Bramblestar flicked his tail and headed out of the camp. Quickly, the two siblings followed suit, slipping out from under the brambles as they headed toward the lake.

The small dark ginger she-cat glanced around, surprised to see how small the group was, and worried about what the other Clans would say when they noticed. She shook her head, pushing that thought aside, and turned her attention back to the others, following her brother as they made their way out of the forest and to the lake shore. Immediately, she turned her gaze toward the mountains, staring in the distance in hopes of seeing the outline, but couldn't make it out in the dark. With a small sigh, she shook her head and realized she had fallen behind. Quickly, she bounded after them and caught up to Molewhisker, slowing her pace to walk next to him.

"You okay, Littlepath?" He meowed, glancing over at her in concern.

She nodded, her gaze drifting away so she wouldn't have to look him in the eye. She knew, from what Snowclaw told her, that their Clanmates only pitied her, but were more often than not annoyed with her daydreaming behavior. "Yeah, I'm fine."

The large tom sighed softly, gently touching his nose to her ear before turning his head away. "I know you're not, but if you don't want to talk about it, that's fine."

She blinked at him gratefully and then admitted, "I've always had this feeling to go beyond the mountains. I don't know why but… it just feels important."

"Have you tried speaking to StarClan?" Molewhisker asked, dropping his voice so they could speak in private. "I know you're not a medicine cat, but if you can find your way to the Moonpool, maybe you could get answers."

Littlepath blinked in surprise, lifting her head as she narrowed her eyes in thought. "That's a good idea," she murmured, lifting her tail in excitement. "I'll do that! Thank you, Molewhisker!" She then touched her nose to his jaw gratefully, relieved that he had given her an idea instead of calling her a mouse-brain.

He purred in response but then stopped, causing Littlepath to strain her neck up to see what the others were looking at.

"Oh, no," she groaned, seeing that they had stopped because a patrol of WindClan cats were running toward them. However, she noticed in surprise that they slowed their pace when they got closer, obviously not looking for a fight.

"Bramblestar!" The WindClan leader called, dipping his head toward the ThunderClan tom. "Mind if we join you?"

"Not at all," Bramblestar rumbled, dipping his head in return to Onestar, and continued on toward the island, padding alongside the WindClan leader.

Littlepath noticed that Kestrelflight immediately darted toward Shrewpaw and Jayfeather, and narrowed her eyes as they began to whisper urgently toward each other, the three medicine cats distancing themselves from the others. "Odd," she muttered but shook her head, staying close to her Clanmates. Despite her unease with the WindClan cats, she couldn't help but notice how small the group was as well and realized that the deputy of WindClan, Harespring, wasn't among them. Unease rippled through her pelt and she slowed her pace, making sure not to catch the attention of Molewhisker, and froze when she spotted a large black-and-white WindClan warrior staring at her in surprise. She stared back, startled by the sudden feeling of friendly recognition that ran through her. She shook her head and quickly bounded back toward Molewhisker, padding alongside him as her pelt continued to prickle.

 _I don't think I've ever seen him before_ , she thought, keeping up with her Clanmates as they skirted the barn and toward the island. _How do I know him? Maybe StarClan has the answer to that as well…_ She shook her head, focusing as they began to slow. It was to her amazement that, ahead of them, was a group composed of RiverClan and ShadowClan cats as they made their way across the tree-bridge. "The rogues," she murmured, realizing that even RiverClan had been effected. Just like ThunderClan and WindClan, the two other Clans had small groups as well, though she couldn't tell if the deputies were among them or not.

It wasn't long until she was able to scramble across the tree-bridge after the rest of her Clanmates, immediately breaking away from them once on the island to search for the black-and-white WindClan tom. When she couldn't find him in the crowd, she was about to head to her brother when she noticed a silver tabby she-cat with a white chest and paws staring at her with large yellow eyes, and Littlepath felt the same pang of recognition from earlier. Immediately, she bounded over toward the RiverClan cat, her heart pounding.

"I know you!" The tabby blurted when Littlepath reached her and then flattened her ears. "I mean, no, I don't know you, but I do!"

"I understand," Littlepath mewed, her fur bristling as her tail twitched in excitement and unease. "I feel like I know you as well!"

"Have we met before?" A voice interrupted, startling the two she-cats and causing them to turn toward it, a dark brown tom with darker paws staring at them with a curious but shy gaze. "I feel like I know you."

Littlepath stared at the ShadowClan tom, her head spinning when she felt the same recognition. She turned her gaze from him to the RiverClan warrior and then turned it away, spotting the large WindClan warrior stalking over to them, his amber eyes revealing his unease. Before he could say anything, she blurted, "I don't understand! I feel like I should know all of you, but I _don't_."

"So you feel the same?" The WindClan tom rasped, sitting down and angling an ear back as the RiverClan leader called for the Gathering to start.

"None of this makes sense," the silver tabby she-cat growled quietly, sitting down as well as her tail lashed.

The dark brown tom settled down onto his belly, kneading the ground anxiously with his front paws. "This is as confusing as the mountains," he muttered and Littlepath barely contained a cry of surprise.

"You mean you feel the need to travel to?" She demanded, thankful they were at the back of the crowd. The three warriors stared at her, their eyes wide in disbelief.

"And to think Mintfur thought I was crazy," the RiverClan she-cat whispered, shaking her head slowly.

"Can you four be quiet?" A cat hissed in front of them and Littlepath flattened her ears in embarrassment.

"Sorry, Tigerheart," the ShadowClan tom whispered and flattened his ears as well, turning his gaze away from the dark brown tom.

Tigerheart snorted and turned his head away, getting up and padding closer toward the center, leaving the four cats alone.

"Let's talk about it after," Littlepath mewed and the others nodded in agreement. She turned her attention back toward the leaders, unable to focus as they took turns listing those who had been killed because of the rogues. _StarClan, what are you trying to tell us?_ She wondered, her blue eyes lifting up toward the moonlit sky. Instead of feeling relieved that she wasn't the only one who felt the same, she was nervous as to what it meant. _Please give us an answer!_

"Due to the recent attacks," Mistystar called, gaining Littlepath's attention. "We've decided to leave back to our camps now that the Gathering is over."

 _No!_ Alarm rushed through the dark ginger she-cat but before she could muster up her voice to protest, another voice beat her to it.

"Wait!" The WindClan medicine cat howled, leaping to his paws and startling the cats around him. "We have something we must announce!"

"What in StarClan's name could it be?" Rowanstar hissed, his tail lashing as he glared down at Kestrelflight. "Littlecloud, do you know what he's talking about?"

"I do," the old tom rasped and got to his paws, briefly glancing toward the others for support before clearing his throat. "A StarClan warrior by the name of Skywatcher ordered us to announce this at this Gathering so we could understand it. _Air, darkness, water, and sky. One of each blood shall travel to save the forgotten Clan from a threat once thought to be forgotten_."

Littlepath suddenly felt a flash of understanding and she leaped to her paws, not thinking of what she was doing, and cried, "The mountains! StarClan wants us to travel beyond the mountains!" Every cat turned her attention to her but she payed no attention, her muscles quivering as her mind began to race. "The prophecy is about us!"


	9. Chapter 8

Shrewpaw stared in amazement when he spotted his small sister jump to her paws in the back of the ground, barely registering what she was saying. _All this time she spoke of the need to travel… StarClan was calling her!_ Excitement flooded through his veins, hearing the other three cats with her call out their agreement.

"Littlepath, what are you talking about?" Bramblestar demanded, standing up on the branch carefully as he stared at her with narrowed eyes.

The dark brown tabby apprentice didn't hear what his sister said in return, instead, he stared out at the four in amazement when the starry forms of the cats that had guided him and the others to Skywatcher appeared beside the four warriors, staring at him and the other medicine cats expectantly. "Do you see them…?" He rasped, legs trembling as his mind spun.

"I do," Mothwing rasped, her eyes wide as she raised her voice amongst the now whispering warriors and the arguing leaders. "StarClan has chosen them!" Silence followed and she got to her paws, standing besides the small ShadowClan tom. "They must get going as soon as possible!"

"Our fallen Clanmates have showed us their words to be true," Kestrelflight added before any cat could protest. "StarClan said one of each blood shall travel to save the forgotten Clan; they are the ones of each blood, they are from each Clan!"

"But can we risk sending them away?" Onestar demanded, his fur bristling with unease as he stared at the four warriors who were now padding toward the front of the crowd.

"The rogues have left," Jayfeather replied, flicking an ear as he rocked back onto his haunches. "And we can't ignore a Clan that's in danger."

"But what other Clan is there?" A voice yowled from the crowd and Shrewpaw flattened his ears.

"We must trust StarClan!" Willowshine cried, leaping to her paws. "These four warriors have been chosen, and if StarClan wants them to travel to the forgotten Clan, then they will get there no matter what."

"But when should they leave?" Mistystar questioned, peering down at the medicine cats with a weary gaze.

"They need to leave at the same time," Shrewpaw murmured, narrowing his eyes in thought.

Cedarpaw cleared her throat and got to her paws, tail twitching nervously. "Tonight, they should go home to their Clans and rest. That means they should be excused of their duties tomorrow. Then, after sunhigh, they can travel back here and sleep, leaving at dawn the next morning. That way they're well rested and already together when they leave."

Littlecloud flashed his apprentice a proud gaze before turning back toward the leaders. "She's right," he called. "They need all the rest they can get."

Silence followed his words and the leaders quickly huddled together, speaking amongst themselves as a tense air flooded around the cats below. Shrewpaw kneaded the ground anxiously, praying that they would agree to Cedarpaw's plan. He didn't want his sister to leave, especially when the objective of the journey was so cloudy, but he knew she needed to do this; StarClan had chosen her and she needed to answer. _Please let them return home safely,_ he thought, turning his amber eyes up toward the sky. No cloud was in sight and the moon shown brightly on the cats below, lighting their fur with a light silver glow. He turned his gaze back toward Littlepath and the other three, staring in amazement as the brief outline of the StarClan cats appeared once more, weaving between the four before fading out.

"It's settled," Rowanstar called, gathering the attention of the cats below. "You four shall go back to your Clans and return here tomorrow after sunhigh like Cedarpaw had suggested. You shall gather your strength for the journey ahead of you. Now, if nothing else is to be said, I believe we should return back to our Clans to tell the others."

Murmurs of agreement followed the ShadowClan leader's words and the four cats leapt down from the branches of the tree, rounding up their Clans as they prepared to leave. Quickly, Shrewpaw raced over to Littlepath, darting through the crowd. "This is it!" He cried and she turned her gaze toward him. "This is why you've been feeling the need to leave all this time!" However, he noticed her blue eyes gleamed in grief and fear, and his heart dropped. "What's wrong?"

"I don't know if I should go!" She blurted and dropped her gaze. "I know I should," she whispered, slowly padding after their Clanmates as they began to leave, and Shrewpaw quickly followed suit. "But I don't even know where we're going and what we need to do. I can't even behave as a warrior!"

"StarClan will be with you," Shrewpaw assured, gently touching his nose to Littlepath's ear in silent encouragement. "Don't worry about it. Maybe after all of this is done, you'll be able to focus on being a warrior again. You need to do this."

The small warrior blinked at her brother in gratitude before bounding away to say her goodbyes to the three other chosen warriors, leaving Shrewpaw staring after her. With a small sigh, he shook his head and padded after his mentor, eager to get back to camp. _StarClan, please keep them safe when they leave. I don't want to lose my sister._

 **Frankly, I think "Dear Fellow Traveler" by Sea Wolf fits the Four pretty well.**

 **Anyway, not much changed in this chapter. Switched around a few parts to different leaders, that way they would all have a turn speaking in this. However, I'm going to be adding three other chapters after this to show how each Clan reacts to one of their warriors leaving. I already have Littlepath's written out, so I may post hers first or last. That way, those chapters will deal more with the reactions rather than this one, because Shrewpaw was in his own little world in this chapter.**


End file.
